Half of the elderly with diabetes is unknown his illness.

– in those over 70 years the percentage of prevalence exceeds 15% and it is estimated that, today, still 50 per cent of the elderly who suffer from diabetes are unaware his illness

– from the age of 65, obesity, excess abdominal fat and weight gain that is produced from the 1950s, lead to an increased risk of diabetes

Madrid, November of 2011- the Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology (SEGG) complaint that fifty percent of the elderly with diabetes is not diagnosed. It is precisely in the older people where diabetes presents atypical demonstrations which hinder their diagnosis. The SEGG, on the occasion of World Diabetes Day which took place on Monday 14 November, warns that the comprehensive geriatric assessment is essential to avoid that the disease can go unnoticed.

Diabetes is a serious disease that occurs when blood glucose levels are very high. Diabetes can cause health problems of high risk (combine, ocular pathologies, cardiovascular problems, kidney damage, and so on) that are compounded in older people. In fact, diabetes is a disease that increases with age and 40 percent of those diagnosed diabetes are over 65. He is expected to by this ailment affects increase greatly in the coming years due to the proliferation of some unhealthy habits such as sedentariness or pathologies such as obesity, reports the Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology (SEGG).

Elderly people who do not know that they are diabetic

Despite the growing prevalence of diabetes, it is good to know that high levels of blood glucose can be controlled to help counteract the disease and prevent or delay the onset of problems in the future. But this control is not the case in all cases, as at present half of elderly diabetics are unaware that they are, so it not being their illness, and this increases the risk of functional impairment, as reported by the Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology. Many of these elderly undiagnosed are suffering health problems blamed at age. This may be due to diseases that are not well treated, including diabetes.

In addition, functional impairment that face the elderly with diabetes joined a cognitive impairment due to neurotoxicity caused by hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia, insulin, or the products glicosilados, which further complicated if the problem.

Characteristics of elderly diabetic

The elderly patient has some special features that make control worse his illness, as the functional deterioration and the cognitive substantially worsen quality of life and its control of the disease. Some elderly patients with cognitive impairment may not understand the basis for the treatment and not knowing what to do before the appearance of a complication, for example, a hypoglycemia. Also, have higher risk of medication errors (for example, can be administered an excess of insulin).

A poor control of the disease can lead to the emergence of microvascular complications (retinopathy, neuropathy and nephropathy) and macrovascular (peripheral vascular circulation, deteriorating carotid atherosclerosis or coronary artery).

Other circumstances that may complicate the management of diabetes in more patients may be the deterioration of visual acuity, depression, social problems or the limitation of access to balanced meals.

In addition, diabetic patients used the double of both hospital and hospital resources than non-diabetic patients. More than 75 years patients have higher mortality rates than the same group without diabetes patients.

On the other hand, the prevalence of disability in elderly diabetic patients is of 66 percent compared with 29 percent of non-diabetics, pointing the SEGG.

Recommendations of the SEGG increased diabetes

The Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology (SEGG), recommends the following actions with regard to the treatment, control and diabetic greater patient monitoring:

– need a continuous education of the family, carers and staff means residential.

-the instructions more diabetic patient should be simple.

-treatment of the elderly should be individualized. We must bear in mind if you suffer from cognitive impairment and deficiencies sensory.

– recommended practice sport: preferably exercises of resistance such as walking or bicycle. Aerobic exercise is beneficial to delay the onset of diabetes and to improve the resistance to insulin in those with the disease established.

– we recommend weight loss, since even slight losses bring benefits.

– reduction of cardiovascular risk factors is recommendedincluding smoking.

-the hanging or home alarm systems can be very useful to control the elderly diabetic.

-is necessary that older diabetics undergo an annual review. In the fragile or very dependent elderly, controls should be asked to make sure that the treatments are appropriate and reactions are adverse.

-the diet should be controlled (especially is necessary to reduce fats), like the rest of drugs to take (polimedicación).

– Watch the weight gain, tension, microalbuminuria (early sign of kidney disease), feet, and glucose regularly.

-urinary glucose tests are less reliable, as this group of patients the renal threshold glycaemic is altered.

On the SEGG

The Spanish society of Geriatrics and Gerontology is a large and active European societies. Currently has more than 2,400 members of multidisciplinary areas: doctors (specialists in geriatrics, primary health care, etc), sociologists, graduates in nursing, social workers, pedagogues, psychologists, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, geographers, economists, architects, pharmacists …

for the SEGG, older persons are its main raison d ’ être and for this reason his work sets two main lines Action: the universalization of the geriatric care specialist in order to avoid inequalities and monitoring of the law of the unit ”.