The Dasman Institute for Research, Training and Prevention of Diabetes and other Chronic Diseases is currently hosting a conference titled 'Research Priorities on Diabetes and Other Chronic Diseases' from December 8 to 10. It is being held under the patronage of Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al -Ahmed Al- Jaber Al- Sabah, the Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs.

The idea of founding the Dasman Institute was proposed by late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. "This institute was founded to fulfill duties toward the society. The increasing number of patients and the rising demand for medical treatment make such institutions a necessity. We will make our efforts to meet this obligation," stated Sheikh Nasser Sabah Al -Ahmed Al-Sabah during the opening ceremony.

It is the first time that the Institute is hosting a conference. "Hosting this conference again is largely dependent on the feedback we receive from this conference. This conference is the meeting point for a large number of doctor from different countries and institutions. I hope that the participating doctors will benefit from this conference," Dr. Abdullah Ben Nikhi, the Deputy Director of the Dasman Institute told the Kuwait Times.

This conference has been divided into seven sessions. Each of these sessions include different presentations and seminars that are addressed by local and foreign doctors. Doctors from Joslin Clinic, Harvard University are the key-note speakers.

Three seminars were held as part of the first session: 'Diabetic Kidney Disease and Hypertension Definition, Prevention and Management in the 21st Century' by Antoine Kaldany, 'The Beta Cell as the Culprit in the Pathogenesis of Type 2 Diabetes' by Gordon Weir, and 'Role of Continuous Glucose Monitoring in Diabetes Management' by Howard Wolpert.

The second session, which was also held on the same day, saw the presentation of three seminars: 'Outpatient Management of Diabetic Foot Ulcerations' by John Giurini, 'Insight into Diabetes Research in Kuwait' by Nabila Abdella, and 'The Challenge of Beta Cell Replacement Therapy' by Gordon Weir.

Sessions 3 and 4 were held on the second day (Wednesday). The third session consisted of two seminars; 'A Collaborative Network to Establish an Arabian Biobank Resource to Identify Disease Genes of Indigenous Population' by Habiba Al-Safar, and 'Design of Diabetes Centric Clinical Informatics Platform.

Also, four seminars were held during the fourth session: 'Implementation of Continuous Glucose Monitoring Practical Issue in Patient Education' by Howard Wolpert, 'Discussion of the Role of Dasman in Kuwait' by Stuart Rosenberg, 'Surgical Treatment of Plantar Ulcerations' by John Giurini, and Insulin Resistance/ Metabolic Syndrome- making the link and reducing the risk' by Fatma Almarashi.

Two sessions will be hosted today. The first session will consist of three presentations: 'Dasman Forward: A Joint Plan for Success' by Antoine Kalany, 'Optimizing Patient Management through Right Electronic Health Platform' by Charles Safran, and 'Physical Activity in the Management of Diabetes and Chronic Diseases' by Jassem Ramadan.

The last session of the conference will include three presentations: 'Integrating Primary Care Excellence with World Class Education and Research' by Stuart Rosenberg, 'Treating the Pathophysiology of Diabetes' by Waleed Al-Dahi, and 'Open Strategy Discussion- Cost Control Discussion while Improving Patient Outcomes' by all of Hilal Al-Sayer, Stuart Rosenberg, Antoine Kaldany, Charles Safran, and Kazem Behbehani. - Kuwait Times