2023-06-07 08:51:24
(Vienna, 07 June 2023) A research team led by the Medical University of Vienna and the Complexity Science Hub Vienna analyzed the actual spread of type 2 diabetes in Austria for the first time as part of a study. In addition to strong regional differences, a previously unknown, alarming number was recorded: Every third person affected suddenly breaks off the treatment and forgoes medication and/or medical checks for at least a year. As the study also showed, this group had a higher mortality rate than diabetics with regular care. The results were recently published in the journal “Scientific Reports”.
Previous information on the frequency of diabetes in Austria is based on estimates or surveys. The first national scientific study on diabetes incidence has now collected the exact number of patients who received drug (antihyperglycaemic) treatment and/or had their blood sugar (HbA1c) monitored by a doctor between 2012 and 2017. A group of previously unknown dimensions was identified: Of the 746,184 patients, 268,680 (140,960 more women than men) discontinued treatment and/or monitoring of their disease for at least one year. For this group, the researchers also demonstrated a significantly increased mortality rate.
“Although neither the cause of mortality in members of this subgroup is known nor a causal relationship between discontinued treatment and mortality has been proven, we cannot rule out some type of connection from a clinical point of view,” emphasizes study leader Alexandra Kautzky-Willer from the University Hospital for Internal Medicine III of the MedUni Vienna. Adherence to therapy plays a central role, especially for diabetics, in order to prevent serious consequences such as cardiovascular diseases, kidney failure, blindness or neuropathies as far as possible.
Analyzed dataset of claimed benefits
The scientists obtained the study results by analyzing the nationwide data set of services claimed, which is collected by the umbrella organization of social security institutions in Austria. “In order to also be able to identify those diabetics who have stopped or interrupted treatment, we developed a new epidemiological diabetes progression model,” says study leader Peter Klimek from the Institute for Science of Complex Systems at MedUni Vienna and Complexity Science Hub Vienna.
New diabetes clusters identified in western Austria
With the help of this method, in addition to trends in the frequency of diabetes, significant regional differences in Austria were also shown and broken down at district level for the first time. The incidence map confirms the east-west divide found in previous studies, with the highest rates in north-eastern districts (especially Bruck/Leitha), but also reveals new diabetes clusters in the west (districts of Imst and Schwaz as well as Innsbruck Stadt). “These new clusters deserve just as much attention as the large number of those who discontinue diabetes treatment,” concludes Alexandra Kautzky-Willer. In order to be able to set countermeasures in a targeted manner, the reasons for the discontinuations or interruptions in therapy should be researched in further studies.
Publikation: Scientific Reports
Trends in diabetes incidence in Austria 2013–2017;
Michaela Kaleta, Michael Leutner, Stefan Thurner, Gottfried Endel, Noemi Kiss, Martin Robausch, Peter Klimek & Alexandra Kautzky-Willer;
Doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-35806-0
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-35806-0
#diabetics #Austria #discontinue #therapy