Poor Quality of Life Linked to Death From Diabetes

A new study suggests that, for older adults with diabetes, longevity may depend not only on factors such as blood sugar control, but on quality of life as well.

In a study of more than 1,100 Dutch adults with type 2 diabetes, researchers found that those who reported physical limitations that impaired their quality of life were more likely to die over the next 6 years.
Quality of life was linked to death risk, independently of a range of well-known factors in diabetic adults’ health — including blood sugar control, weight, blood pressure and kidney function.

Lead researcher Dr. Nanne Kleefstra, of Isala Clinics in Zwolle stated that,  “It’s not clear why this is, but the findings suggest that doctors should look beyond standard "clinical parameters" in assessing patients with type 2 diabetes.”
The study, published in the journal Diabetes Care, included 1,143 older adults who completed a standard survey on health-related quality of life. This included questions on physical well-being, such as how well they were able to perform routine activities like climbing stairs and carrying groceries.

Overall, study participants who scored below the median for physical well-being were twice as likely to die over the next 6 years as those who scored higher.

High quality of life should be a goal of healthcare in general, Kleefstra’s team points out.
However, the researchers add, knowing that it may make a difference in lifespan should give doctors "added incentive" to ask diabetic patients about their quality of life, and address any problems when possible.

Diabetes Care, May 2008.

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DID YOU KNOW:
Progression to Macroalbuminuria Occurs Earlier In Children With Diabetes: In an inception cohort of people with childhood onset type 1 diabetes, the cumulative prevalence of microalbuminuria was 26% and 51% after 10 and 19 years of diabetes, respectively. The cumulative prevalence of macroalbuminuria was 14% after 19 years. The message is that the probability of progression to macroalbuminuria was remarkably similar to that in adult onset disease, but occurs at an earlier age and in people with intermittent and persistent microalbuminuria. There is apparently a need to consider earlier intervention strategies for macroalbuminuria in patients diagnosed with diabetes during childhood.  

BMJ. 2008;336:697-701.