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| Image: US Dept. of Justice |
DIABETES DIGEST – July 14, 2015 – People who have diabetes and experience high rates of complications are more likely to develop dementia as they age than people who have fewer diabetic complications, according to a new study published ahead of print in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
The 12-year-long population-based study analyzed records from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database dating back to 1999 to identify 431,178 people who were older than 50 and newly diagnosed with diabetes. The researchers reviewed the records to determine how many people in the cohort were admitted to a hospital or had at least three outpatient medical visits for dementia after they were diagnosed with diabetes.
Among the people in the analysis, 26,856 people, or 6.2 percent, were diagnosed with dementia. The researchers evaluated the progression of each individual’s diabetes using an adapted version of the Diabetes Complications Severity Index, a tool used to predict deaths and hospitalizations among people with diabetes.
They found the risk of developing dementia was higher among people who had a high score on the Diabetes Complications Severity Index than for those who had a low score.
“The study demonstrates why it is so crucial for people with diabetes to work closely with health care providers on controlling their blood sugar,” study author Wei-Che Chiu, MD, PhD, concluded. “Managing the disease can help prevent the onset of dementia later in life.”
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