You may have heard mention of this condition on the news this week because a major study has been published on diabetes by the NHS Information Centre.
Many of you may know of someone who is diabetic or indeed you yourself may be diabetic.
For those of you who know nothing about it you may ask what is it?
Diabetes insipidus is a rare disease, but most people suffer from diabetes mellitus either type 1 or type 2.
Type 1 usually emerges early on in life. The bodies of people who suffer from type 1 cannot produce enough of the insulin hormone (or any at all) and therefore they have to take insulin often via injections for life. Insulin helps the body process body fats but if it is absent that process does not work and there is a build up of sugar in the blood. Too much sugar in the blood creates problems but so does too little – low blood sugar is called hypoglycaemia and can lead to a number of problems and even a fatal coma.
Type 2 diabetes may develop later in life. Improving one’s diet and losing weight can help that condition.
If diabetes is not managed effectively it can lead to very serious complications including loss of vision and kidney failure.
It may be surprising, but not everyone who has diabetes knows they have it! So education of the public is indeed an issue.
The current report worryingly highlights that an estimated 24,000 people each year die from their condition and that these deaths are “avoidable”. The right health checks, good diet and regular appropriate medication can prevent these deaths. It is also of concern to note in the report that diabetes is becoming more common.
Earlier this year another report was produced by the NHS Information Centre and that looked at hospital treatment of diabetic patients. The report highlighted the problem that many patients do not get enough specialist diabetic input whilst they are in hospital.
Secondly, medication errors were “worryingly common” and these were associated with poorer outcomes for patients.
The earlier report concluded that there is a “cause for concern about the care of inpatients with diabetes in most hospitals”.
Yes, this authoritative report highlighted that the problem was indeed in “most hospitals”!
These reports emphasise that the fate for diabetic patients is not just in their own hands, but also in the hands of their doctors.
If you want to know more have a look at the NHS Information Centre website and other websites like Diabetes UK.
