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Three of Five People With Diabetes Suffer Complications

Bruce Goldfarb

About three out of five people in the U.S. with type 2 diabetes have at least one medical complication related to the disease, according to a new report released at the annual meeting of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE), held April 11–15 in Seattle.

According to the report, State of Diabetes Complications in America, 33.3% of Americans with type 2 diabetes have one complication of diabetes, such as heart attack, coronary artery disease, congestive heart failure, chest pain, chronic kidney disease, retinal neuropathy, or peripheral neuropathy. Ten percent have two complications, 6.7% have three complications, and 7.6% have four or more complications related to diabetes.

The report highlights a "striking difference" in the prevalence of complications such as heart disease and chronic kidney disease among people with diabetes compared with people who have normal blood glucose levels. For example:

• Heart attacks occur in 9.8% of people with diabetes compared with 1.8% of people without the disorder.
  
• Strokes occur in 6.8% of people with diabetes compared with 1.8% of others.
  
• Chronic kidney disease occurs in 27.8% of people with diabetes compared with 6.1% of others.
  
• Foot problems, such as neuropathy and amputations, occur in 22.8% of people with diabetes compared with 10% of others.
  

In terms of costs, nationwide diabetes complications are responsible for $22.9 billion in health care costs, according to the report. On an individual level, estimated health care costs for a person with diabetes and its related complications are about three times that of a person without the disease. Total annual expenditures for a person with diabetes are almost $10,000, of which nearly $1,600 are paid out-of-pocket by the patient.

The report is based on an analysis of data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey.

AACE conducted the analysis in partnership with a diabetes complications consortium that includes the National Kidney Foundation, the National Federation of the Blind, the Amputee Coalition of America, and Mended Hearts.

Footnotes

FYI

The full text of the AACE report, State of Diabetes Complications in America, is available at www.aace.com/newsroom/press/2007/images/DiabetesComplicationsReport_FINAL.pdf. Additional information is at http://stateofdiabetes.com.

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