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Therapies & Services

Diabetes care

Diabetes is a chronic, metabolic disease suffered by well over 200 million people worldwide – and increasing greatly. The disease is caused by a physiological disorder in the body's ability to produce or use insulin. This implies that blood sugar levels become too high which in its turn can lead to serious complications such as chronic kidney failure, blindness, heart attack, nerve damage.

Currently, there is no cure for diabetes, but treatments stabilise blood sugar levels very well.

Two types of diabetes exist:
Type 1 diabetes is typically diagnosed in children and young adults, but can occur at all ages. In Type 1 diabetes, the beta-cells in the pancreas are destroyed, and so no or too little insulin is produced. To control blood sugar levels, daily injections of insulin are required - for life. About 10% of diabetes patients suffer from Type 1 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes typically occurs in adults over 40 years of age, however with an increase in the number of younger people. In Type 2 diabetes the pancreas produce insulin, but either it is not enough or the body does not use the insulin effectively. As the onset of Type 2 diabetes occurs gradually, it often goes unnoticed for years. About 90% of diabetes patients suffer from Type 2 diabetes.

Novo Nordisk offers the broadest portfolio of diabetes treatments and an extensive range of user-friendly dosing systems for injecting insulin. Our insulin range covers short-acting, long-acting and premix analogues. We continually strive to sustain this leading position in treating diabetes patients.

We have also developed a range of diabetes services, including educational and training materials for both healthcare professionals and people with diabetes.

Haemostasis management

Haemostasis treatment aims to manage uncontrolled bleeding arising from a chronic coagulation disorder or from emergencies, traumas and surgery.

Haemophilia is an inherited, chronic disease affecting about one in 8,000 men worldwide. It is characterized by un-controlled bleeding resulting from a coagulation disorder.

Coagulation involves a chain reaction of a number of compounds, called blood proteins. Haemophilia occurs when this chain reaction is defective because of coagulation factors Factor VIII or IX is missing.

Haemophilia is usually treated with intravenous infusions of the missing blood proteins. In many cases, the proteins can be given as replacement therapy to either treat or even prevent bleeding. However, about 25% of haemophilia patients develop an immune response to the missing proteins, called inhibitors. The inhibitor essentially renders the infusion of Factor VIII or Factor IX ineffective in the prevention and treatment of bleeding.

Novo Nordisk launched NovoSeven® in 1996 - a recombinant Factor VIIa enabling coagulation to proceed in the absence of Factors VIII or IX. Specifically, NovoSeven® bypasses the effects of the inhibitors to coagulation and has proven to be effective in the treatment of bleeding in haemophilia patients with inhibitors.

Outside haemophilia, Novo Nordisk is continually testing the effectiveness of NovoSeven® in other bleeding situations, currently in emergencies, intra-cerebral haemorrhages, trauma, cardiac surgery, spinal surgery, traumatic brain injury and variceal bleedings. An estimated 5 million people die from these incidents annually.

Growth hormone therapy

Human growth hormone (hGH) is a protein produced in the pituitary gland in the brain carried around in the blood. During childhood, growth hormone is needed to grow to normal adult height. In adults the main effect of using growth hormone is the regulation of metabolism.

Novo Nordisk markets Norditropin®, a human growth hormone for the treatment of growth hormone deficiency in children and in adults, Turner Syndrome, and other indications. Norditropin® is the world’s first liquid, pre-mixed human growth hormone in a dedicated pen system. NordiPenMate® is an auto-insertion device which helps people with injection phobia.

Novo Nordisk is continually investigating new indications where the anabolic effect of hGH will improve the outcome of the disease.

Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)

Between the age 45 and 55, women experience menopause as production of the hormones oestrogen and progesterone gradually ceases. Many women experience uncomfortable symptoms from the menopause, such as hot flushes, night sweats and insomnia.

After menopause, as the amount of estrogen their bodies produce decreases, women also become more vulnerable to cardiovascular diseases and osteoporosis.

Novo Nordisk is one of the world's largest manufacturers of hormone replacement products and strives to sustain this position by continually developing the portfolio.

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