Pre-diagnosed Diabetes: Approach to Better Options: If you accidentally slip with a knife and cut your finger deeply then the use of a Band-Aid might not be enough to fix the damage. Stomach cancer can’t be treated with antacids. Vision problems can’t be treated by simply eating more carrots. You may see the logic in these statements, but wonder what this might have to do with diabetes.
In America and around the world people are being treated for symptoms of diabetes without an actual diagnosis of diabetes. These patients will visit with their health care practitioner for a variety of issues such as kidney problems, heart issues, high blood pressure and some neurological disorders. While these issues may be addressed it is possible a symptom is being treated while the disease is ignored. This is where the topic of diabetes may be treated with the proverbial Band-Aid.
In the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, just recently released through the journal Population Health Management 6.3 million Americans are being treated for diabetic symptoms without a proper diagnosis.
What this means in real terms is that these individuals may not even be aware they need to work at controlling their blood glucose. These patients will not be testing their blood sugar and will likely be eating the same foods they’ve always eaten.
This also means that $18 billion is needed every year to pay for costs related to the care of patience who probably should be diagnosed with diabetes. It is estimated that undiagnosed diabetes accounts for 25% of all diabetic cases.
Researchers claim that if this money were added to the total financial payment for diabetes care it would bring the tally to nearly $200 billion annually.
WebMD cites other findings discovered by researchers.
- The economic cost of undiagnosed diabetes is $2,864 per person.
- Incremental costs of undiagnosed diabetes begin at least eight years before diagnosis.
- About 4%-6% of men 35 to 64 have undiagnosed diabetes.
- About 14% of men 65 to 69 have undiagnosed diabetes.
The study’s authors write, “To the best of our knowledge, no study has investigated the health care use patterns and economic costs for patients with [undiagnosed diabetes], although present research does show an increase in medical costs in the years leading up to diagnosis.”
WebMD indicated, “Scientists used data from more than 3 million people included in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to estimate costs and numbers of people in the U.S. with undiagnosed diabetes, tabulating bills for treatment of various symptoms of the disease.”
The study seems to suggest that if these individuals who may be in the earliest stages of the disease could be identified early enough it might be possible to minimize costs while maximizing their individual managed care simply by giving them tools needed to treat the disease of diabetes instead of the symptoms.
Factually the needed care for treating a symptom of diabetes will be very different from treating the disease. The first may result in a continued need for treatment of a symptom while the second provides a framework for long-term management of a disease.
While the diagnosis of diabetes is missing in many cases it is still probable that the cost for taking care of undiagnosed diabetes will still be significantly higher than for someone who is not diabetic.
The primary symptom treated, but not always linked to diabetes, is heart disease.
