Wagner EH, Grothaus LC, Sandhu N, Galvin MS, McGregor M, Artz K, Coleman EA. Chronic care clinics for diabetes in primary care: A system-wide randomized trial. Diabetes Care. 2001;24(4):695-700.

Periodic primary care sessions organized to meet the complex needs of diabetic patients improved the process of diabetes care and was associated with better health outcomes.

Goldhaber-Fiebert JD, Goldhaber-Fiebert SN, Tristan ML, Nathan DM. Randomized controlled community-based nutrition and exercise intervention improves glycemia and cardiovascular risk factors in type 2 diabetic patients in rural Costa Rica. Diabetes Care. 2003;26(1):24-29.

Although only a short-term study with a small number of patients, this paper does show what can be achieved in a community setting.

Glasgow RE, La Chance PA, Toobert DJ, Brown J, Hampson SE, Riddle MA. Long-term effects and costs of brief behavioral dietary intervention for patients with diabetes delivered from the medical office. Patient Educ Couns. 1997;32(3):175-184.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a single session intervention involving touchscreen computer-assisted assessment that provided feedback on key barriers to dietary self-management.

Renders CM, Valk GD, Franse LV, Schellevis FG, van Eijk JT, van der Wal G. Long-term effectiveness of a quality improvement program for patients with type 2 diabetes in general practice. Diabetes Care. 2001;24(8):1365-1370.

A review of multifaceted professional interventions and organizational interventions found that structural and systems changes and regular review of patients was effective in improving the process of care. The addition of patient education to these interventions and the enhancement of the role of nurses in diabetes care led to improvements in patient outcomes and the process of care.

Norris SL, Nichols PJ, Caspersen CJ, et al. The effectiveness of disease and case management for people with diabetes: A systematic review. American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2002;22(4 Suppl 1):15-38.

Concludes that there is good evidence supporting the effectiveness of case management in managed care settings, but that the amount of benefit reported has varied substantially between studies and that further evaluations are needed in other patient populations.

Younis N, Broadbent DM, Vora JP, Harding SP. Incidence of sight-threatening retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes in the Liverpool Diabetic Eye Study: A cohort study. Lancet. 2003;361(9353):195-200.

Incidence of sight-threatening retinopathy in patients with type 2 diabetes in the Liverpool Diabetic Eye Study.

Litzelman DK, Slemenda CW, Langefeld CD, et al. Reduction of lower extremity clinical abnormalities in patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. A randomized, controlled trial. Annals of Internal Medicine. 1993;119(1):36-41.

An intervention designed to reduce risk factors for lower-extremity amputations positively affected patient self-foot-care behavior, as well as the foot care given by health care providers, and reduced the prevalence of lower-extremity clinical disease in patients with diabetes.

Diabetes Control and Complications Trial Research Group. The effect of intensive treatment of diabetes on the development and progression of long-term complications in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. New England Journal of Medicine. 1993;329:977-986.

This is the definitive trial of tight glucose control in patients with Type I diabetes, demonstrating decreased complications with improved glucose control.

United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study Group. UKPDS 28: A randomized trial of efficacy of early addition of metformin in sulfonylurea-treated type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care. 1998;21(1):87-92.

Paradoxical findings that metformin treatment was associated with improved outcomes (compared to those treated with sulfonylurea alone), but that combination metformin/sulfonylurea treatment was associated with worse outcomes.

United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study Group. Cost effectiveness analysis of improved blood pressure control in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes: UKPDS 40. British Medical Journal. 1998;317:720-726.

The UKPDS is a landmark study demonstrating the effectiveness of improved glycemic control on decreasing complications of Type II diabetes. Additional studies in the same population demonstrated even greater benefits for maximizing blood pressure control.