A recent study released by the International Diabetes Federation revealed a not very encouraging picture of the progress in the world of this disease in people between 20 and 79 years of age: the projections are that the more than 547 million people were diagnosed with diabetes last year and this will increase to 784 million diabetics by 2045.
Jefferson Civira // Correspondent lapatilla.com
The endocrinologist Cruz Rodríguez Hernández, with more than 35 years of professional practice and who currently works as coordinator of the National Diabetes Federation in Monagas, revealed that the projections for the next 22 years are very alarming.
In Latin America, the number of diabetics up to 2022 were around 32 million people. It is estimated that by 2045, the number will increase to 49 million, which represents an increase of 46%.
The situation in the country is no less encouraging, despite the fact that the last study was carried out between 2014 and 2018 by the Venezuelan Society of Internal Medicine, whose objective was to determine the prevalence of cardio-metabolic risk factors, that is for: diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases. For that year (2018) there were more than 2,400,000 Venezuelans diagnosed with diabetes.
“The study at that time projected that there are more than eight million people at risk of developing diabetes in the next 20 years, a frightening number. This study also showed that there are seven and a half million people with hypertension in the country. It was also revealed that diabetes will be a very difficult disease to treat adequately in the coming years. That conclusion was reached in 2018, where are we right now?” Rodríguez asks with concern.
The endocrinology specialist pointed out that the difficulty of treating this disease is because in the case of type II diabetes there are no evident symptoms, but the health consequences can gradually appear and be devastating.
Guide patients
Another factor is the purchasing power for the required medicines, as well as the shortage of medicines such as insulin, and also the lack of a diabetes awareness education program sponsored by the State.
In contrast to this situation, the specialist indicated that five years ago they began with a diabetes education program through the “Guarapiche-San Simón Rotary Club”, which originally began person to person, but after the pandemic lockdowns, the program was implemented via social networks, specifically through a WhatsApp group made up of almost 400 patients who receive weekly talks on how to control their disease.
“In this group we tell diabetic patients how to eat well, how to take care of their heart condition, the use of pills, foot and eye care, what are the numbers of a good control, insulins and their types, that is, Every Rotary year that begins in July and ends in June of the following year, we give 10 topics on diabetes, whether it is a visiting doctor or myself, and the relationship with the patients is very good. What we are doing is being done in very few states and I say it with full propriety, because I am part of the National Diabetes Federation,” said the endocrine doctor.
In relation to age, the expert added that diabetes in children, which is type I, is very difficult to control due to their age, the need to inject insulin two or three times a day and also because of the diet, having control the consumption of sweets and sugary drinks.
However, he points out that the incidence of this type of diabetes is much lower, so the vast majority of patients, about 95%, are adults with type II diabetes.
“In 2016 when I retired, there were 19,000 people registered with diabetes in the Monagas State network. Currently I can’t say exactly how many there are, because I don’t handle that number. There are diabetic children, that cannot be denied, because in my private practice I treat children. Of course, it is a much smaller number compared to adults,” Rodríguez points out.
The professional emphasizes that diabetes is currently a real public health problem, and has even been compared to AIDS.
Colleagues told him that they can see up to eight new cases of HIV in a month, but he was not surprised because eight cases of diabetes can be seen in one day in his office.
It is a disease that anyone can suffer, regardless of race, sex, age, religion or social class.