Cairo Tower lights up in Blue for World Diabetes Day

Cairo, Egypt,

The landmark lighting is part of the awareness campaign ‘For Your Diabetes & Heart Health’

Leading international pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim, lit up Cairo Tower landmark in blue as part of its latest campaign titled “For Your Diabetes & Heart Health”. With the aim to support and educate Patient with Type 2 Diabetes on the complications and risks of diabetes, the awareness campaign comes in line with World Diabetes Day, which is celebrated on 14 November from every year. Boehringer Ingelheim has been showing relentless efforts in developing treatments and pioneering in research and development in effort to fight metabolic conditions and its effect on the heart and kidney.

Cardio-renal-metabolic conditions are considered the leading cause of death worldwide, accounting for up to 20 million deaths annually1, where the metabolic, the cardiovascular and renal systems are interconnected sharing many of the same risk factors and pathological pathways along the disease continuum. The latest medical research has shown that one in two people with Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) worldwide dies due to a cardiovascular disease (CVD), marking cardiovascular risks as the leading cause of mortality among patients with (T2D).

Statistics indicate that up to 40 percent of patients with heart failure (HF) develop T2D3, in addition to the diagnosis of 37 percent of adults suffering from diabetes with chronic kidney disease4,5, which arouse the need for raising awareness on the impact of diabetes on other organ systems.

“For Your Diabetes & Heart Health” campaign is part of Boehringer Ingelheim’s efforts to raise awareness on one of the most common diseases. The company is playing an active role in corporate social responsibility through this new campaign, while also providing treatment for better quality of life. The treatment journey of chronic diseases is linked to daily life habits, which is of equal importance as of medications. In diabetes, a holistic health approach does not only address hyperglycemia and cardiovascular risk factors on the short term, but also reduces the overall risk of disease progression and associated cardiovascular and kidney complications on the long term.  

“Diabetes causes serious complications to the heart and kidneys, approximately three-quarters of late stage kidney diseases’ cases are attributed to diabetes6,7stated Prof. Ibrahim Elebrashy, Professor of Internal Medicine in Cairo University. He stressed on the need to give the due attention to the symptoms and treatment protocols; as the cardio-renal-metabolic systems are interconnected and result in affecting more than one billion people worldwide8. “Dysfunction in one system may contribute to dysfunction of others, resulting in progression of interconnected disease9,10”, Elebrashy added.

Boehringer Ingelheim has embarked on a clinical trials development program on “Emplagliflozin” to study its impact on improving patients’ health outcomes and fill the therapeutic gaps for a broad range of patients suffering from cardio-renal-metabolic conditions. The EMPEROR-Reduced clinical trials form part of the EMPOWER clinical programme, one of the broadest, most comprehensive trials of any SGLT2 inhibitor, exploring the impact of treatments across cardio-renal-metabolic conditions.

Dr. Mohamed Meshref, General Manager of Boehringer Ingelheim in Egypt, stated that Diabetes is a fast-growing health problem in Egypt with a significant impact on morbidity, mortality and health care resources. “Currently, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Egypt is around 15.6% of all adults aged 20-79. Increasing awareness levels, committing to a healthy lifestyle, and following up regularly with doctors for patients with diabetes is the basis for managing this disease.” Dr. Meshref pointed out to the effect of diabetes on human’s general health11. “In Boehringer Ingelheim, we invest in research studies and treatment trials to support patients towards a better quality of life.”

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About Boehringer Ingelheim 

Making new and better medicines for humans and animals is at the heart of what we do. Our mission is to create breakthrough therapies that change lives. Since its founding in 1885, Boehringer Ingelheim is independent and family-owned. We have the freedom to pursue our long-term vision, looking ahead to identify the health challenges of the future and targeting those areas of need where we can do the most good.

As a world-leading, research-driven pharmaceutical company, more than 51,000 employees create value through innovation daily for our three business areas: Human Pharma, Animal Health, and Biopharmaceutical Contract Manufacturing. In 2019, Boehringer Ingelheim achieved net sales of 19 billion euros. Our significant investment of almost 3.5 billion euros in R&D drives innovation, enabling the next generation of medicines that save lives and improve quality of life. 

We realize more scientific opportunities by embracing the power of partnership and diversity of experts across the life-science community. By working together, we accelerate the delivery of the next medical breakthrough that will transform the lives of patients now, and in generations to come.

More information about Boehringer Ingelheim can be found at www.boehringer-ingelheim.com or in our annual report: http://annualreport.boehringer-ingelheim.com

References

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6]United States Renal Data System, USRDS 2012 Annual data report: Atlas of chronic kidney disease and end-stage renal disease in the United States, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bethesda, MD, 2012. Available online at: http://www.usrds.org/reference.htm. See Appendix I, United States RenalData System (USRDS). Last accessed October 2020.
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11]Sarafidis P, Ferro CJ, Morales E, et al. SGLT-2 inhibitors and GLP-1 receptor agonists for nephroprotection and cardioprotection in patients with diabetes mellitus and chronic kidney
disease. A consensus statement by the EURECA-m and the DIABESITY working groups of the ERA-EDTA. Available online at: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30753708/. Last
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