Clinical trials in youth with type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes in youth was almost unheard of only two decades ago. However, tracking the recent dramatic rise in childhood obesity, type 2 diabetes has become increasingly prevalent. Thus, there is an urgent need for high-quality clinical trials to increase in-depth knowledge about pathophysiology, optimal treatment, and prevention. We therefore systematically reviewed published and ongoing clinical trials of type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents. The results demonstrate that (i) few randomized clinical trials have been completed and published in children with type 2 diabetes; (ii) ongoing trials in type 1 diabetes clearly outnumber trials in type 2 diabetes; and (iii) recruitment and enrollment into the latter trials are challenging, however once achieved, drop-out rates are not excessively high. We conclude that type 2 diabetes in youth is an important but difficult new field of clinical research, and we discuss the existing barriers to successful recruitment, conduct, and support of these clinical trials. Published 2010. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.