Better diabetes management could prevent 1 million complications

A new study shows even modest sustained improvement in blood glucose levels could significantly improve outcomes for the 3.5 million people with diabetes in the UK, avoiding almost a million serious complications, such as blindness, amputation and kidney failure over 25 years.¹

Better management of blood glucose levels could save the NHS £5.5 billion over the same period.

The study, IMPACT 2, the outcome of a collaboration between Diabetes UK, the type 1 diabetes charity JDRF and Sanofi, quantifies the patient and financial benefit over 25 years of earlier intervention for better controlling blood glucose. The findings could have a significant impact for people with diabetes and NHS budgets:¹

• 870,000 potentially preventable complications for people with type 2 diabetes (T2D), avoiding costs of £4.5 billion over 25 years for the NHS.
• 88,000 potentially preventable complications for people with type 1 diabetes (T1D), saving £1 billion in NHS costs over 25 years.

Chris Askew, Diabetes UK Chief Executive commented: ‘IMPACT 2 demonstrates that even small improvements in blood glucose levels can result in huge benefits for people with diabetes with the potential to stop 23,000 people suffering severe kidney failure, almost 160,000 [foot] ulcers and amputations and over 50,000 people suffering severe loss of vision. This should be a priority for all those involved in providing care for people with diabetes.’

He said: ‘Preventing T2D through public health initiatives is the best way of reducing spend long-term, however much greater efforts are needed to ensure all people with diabetes get the support and care they need for a good quality of life and better health outcomes.’

Karen Addington, Chief Executive of JDRF in the UK, added: ‘People with T1D are routinely still receiving poorer care and are less likely to be meeting NICE recommended blood glucose targets, when compared to people with T2D.’

Blood glucose management in the UK is among the worst in Europe – on average, people in the UK with T2D have the highest blood glucose levels (HbA1c 84 mmol.mol) when compared with nine other developed countries, at the point of insulin initiation.

A previous study, IMPACT 1, showed that diabetes costs the NHS £10 billion each year which is about 10% of the entire NHS budget.² Nearly 80% of these costs are attributable to treating avoidable complications, which could be reduced through improved blood glucose control. Diabetes is the leading preventable cause of sight loss in people of working age in the UK and 135 amputations are carried out every week as a result of poor management.

1. Baxter M, et al. Diabetic Medicine 2016 Jan 16. Doi: 10.1111/dme. 13062 [Epub ahead of print]

2. Hex N, et al. Diabetic Medicine 2012;29(7):855-62