Diabetes time bomb revealed
TODAY the Mail can reveal a ticking health time bomb with 1,900 people in Hartlepool suffering from diabetes they don't know they have.
There are 40,000 potential sufferers across the region – with Hartlepool having the highest proportion of undiagnosed patients.
The figures, released by Diabetes Health Intelligence UK, relate to people with Type 2 diabetes, a form of the condition which can be treated through tablets and diet control.
If the condition eventually worsens and progresses to Type 1, then sufferers will face a lifetime of insulin control where they have to inject themselves to control their blood sugar levels.
Type 2 diabetes can go undetected for up to 10 years and around half of people already show signs of complications by the time they are diagnosed.
Shocking new figures show that people are at risk of possible blindness, kidney failure, heart disease and strokes.
Diabetes can be detected with a simple test and today campaigners called for more screening to identify sufferers.
Early diagnosis and effective management of the condition are crucial in reducing the risk of developing life-changing complications.
Linda Wood, Diabetes UK's regional manager, said: "This new estimate of 1,900 undiagnosed Type 2 cases in Hartlepool is truly alarming.
"PCTs need to better prioritise screening of at-risk groups and improve uptake of programmes such as NHS Health Checks.
"We face a bleak future of spiralling NHS costs and worsening public health if diagnosis rates for Type 2 diabetes do not improve.
"Diabetes is serious but once people are diagnosed and start managing it, there is every reason they can live long and healthy lives."
Diabetes is a condition where the amount of glucose in the blood is too high because the body cannot use it properly and when the pancreas does not produce any insulin, or not enough, to help glucose enter the body's cells.
The symptoms of diabetes include urinating more often– especially at night – increased thirst, extreme tiredness, unexplained weight loss, genital itching or regular episodes of thrush, slow healing of cuts and wounds and blurred vision.
Risk factors for developing Type 2 diabetes are being overweight or having a large waist, being over 40 and having a close relative with diabetes.
People being treated for diabetes across Hartlepool and east Durham are given regular check-ups at the University Hospital of Hartlepool, while a drop-in centre situated within the Holdforth Road site is also open
five days a week.
A spokeswoman for North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust said: "We offer a very good service for people suffering from diabetes across Hartlepool and the surrounding areas and we are continually working with the primary care trust to make improvements to that service."
No one at the PCT was available for comment.
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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