A new cell transplantation technique is being used by researchers in order to repair the cells that produce insulin in patients with type 1 diabetes. The study, presented this week at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, shows that the procedure is minimally invasive and with few complications.

One of the authors of the study explains that they used ultrasound guidance to inject donor cells into the portal vein of diabetic patients, which is accessed through the skin. This is a safe method of cell transplantation that could potentially become a same-day procedure.

The experts explain that the body does not produce insulin in type 1 diabetes, which results from the destruction of insulin-producing islet beta cells in the pancreas. Insulin is the basic fuel that all cells need to metabolize sugar.

The study shows that the used technique is minimally invasive, since donor islet cells are injected into diabetic patients so that the new healthy islet cells can restore insulin production, which is essential to stop disease advancement.

According to the study, fifteen islet cell transplantations were carried out to 13 patients with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes, two patients received two procedures to achieve correct needle placement.

The expert in chief told that they used a steroid-free protocol in order to suppress the immune system, so that the body accepted the transplanted cells. We also developed a 'sandwich technique' to close the access site through the skin, where the islet cells are injected. The sandwich technique is so-called because of the layered applications of gelfoam and coil used to close the access site.