FRIDAY, March 4 (HealthDay News) -- Poor diagnosis and
ineffective treatment of diabetes may put millions of people
worldwide at risk for early death, a new study finds.
U.S. researchers examined diabetes diagnosis, treatment and
management in Colombia, England, Iran, Mexico, Scotland, Thailand
and the United States.
Nearly 90 percent of U.S. adult diabetics -- more than 16
million adults aged 35 and older -- have ineffective treatment of
blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol. That percentage is 99
percent in Mexico, said the researchers at the Institute for Health
Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in
Seattle.
Among the other findings from the seven countries included in
the study:
- The percentage of diabetes patients who achieved International
Diabetes Federation treatment goals for blood glucose, blood
pressure and serum cholesterol ranges from 1 to 12 percent.
- Diabetes diagnosis rates were higher for women than men.
- Most people diagnosed with diabetes do not receive treatment
for other cardiovascular risk factors that could be just as
dangerous to their health as uncontrolled blood sugar.
- In the United States, diagnosis and effective treatment was
twice as likely for people with health insurance as those without
insurance.
"Too many people are not being properly diagnosed with diabetes and related cardiovascular disease risk factors. Those who are diagnosed aren't being effectively treated. This is a huge missed opportunity to lower the burden of disease in both rich and poor countries," study co-author Dr. Stephen Lim, an associate professor of global health, said in an IHME news release.
The study appears in the March edition of the
Bulletin of the World Health Organization.
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney
Diseases has more about
diabetes.