CHENNAI: Delayed diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes poses a high risk of other associated health conditions like heart diseases, kidney failure, stroke and vision loss, according to a study. Forty six per cent of diagnosed patients in Chennai were not worried about the risks and complications of Type 2 diabetes in the future.
Patients also have limited awareness about managing the condition to maintain their blood sugar levels. Close to 85 per cent of patients have incorrect notion that the best thing to manage hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) is eating a high calorie chocolate bar, said a study done by Time2DoMore in Diabetes.
The study revealed that 88 per cent patients were prescribed medication immediately after the first consultation, in Chennai. This means that they had already developed Type 2 diabetes and had a delayed diagnosis.
Type 2 Diabetes Mellitusis a condition characterised by an excess of glucose in the bloodstream due to defects in both insulin production and insulin sensitivity.
“When diabetes is first detected, control of blood sugars seems relatively easy with the use of 1-2 medicines. With the passage of time, the control of diabetes becomes more difficult and people need to use multiple medicine or insulin. It is seen that, even when people maintain good blood sugar control, then too it may lead to complications like heart attack or stroke etc.
Studies over the last few years have shown that good control of diabetes soon after diagnosis leads to much less complications in long term than taking precaution on a later stage after many years of diagnosis,” said SIMS Hospital endocrinologist and diabetologist, Dr Jayashree Gopal.