More Good News: Diabetes Complications on the Wane
<p>Commonwealth Fund President David Blumenthal, M.D., reflects in his <a href="/blog/2014/reflecting-health-reform-more-good-news-diabetes-complications-wane">latest blog post</a> on more good news about health care value: a new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention finding that complications from diabetes fell sharply between 1990 and 2010. The most dramatic reductions were in heart attacks (down 68 percent) and deaths from uncontrolled blood sugar (down 64 percent). </p><p>Blumenthal, a former practicing primary care physician, reviews factors that contributed to the decline, including studies showing tight control of blood sugar, lipids, and blood pressure help reduce complications. Improvements in the health system, such as the use of quality measures and electronic medical records, have likely also played a role. </p>
<p>He also cautions against complacency, pointing to the growing prevalence of diabetes and disparities in the availability of care across different populations and regions. </p>
<p>"To deal with the looming burden of diabetes-related illness—and the consequences of the many other chronic diseases that afflict our aging population—we need to double down on the successes we have enjoyed recently in improving health system performance," Blumenthal writes. </p>
<p>Read the complete post on The <a href="/blog/2014/reflecting-health-reform-more-good-news-diabetes-complications-wane">Commonwealth Fund Blog</a>. </p>