PUNE: With sedentary lifestyle comes the perils of lifestyle diseases and the doctors feel that an increase in the prevalence of diabetes in India, especially in the younger population shows there is no ‘safe age’ zone.
World Diabetes Day is observed on November 14 every year. Medical experts said that sugar levels in the blood affect the working of kidneys, eyes and other vital organs.
Dr Harshal Ekatpure, Consultant, Endocrinology, said that there is a need for awareness to help people spot diabetes symptoms early because if left untreated, diabetes can lead to life-changing complications, including blindness, kidney failure, heart attack and strokes. Amol Naikawadi, JMD, Indus Health Plus, said, “The parents should be more aware and take children for health check-up whenever they observe diabetic symptoms. Early diagnosis can help in taking necessary measures.
Effect on kidneys
Dr Suresh Patankar, a well-known kidney specialist and President of Ace Multi Speciality Hospital Erandwane, said that there is a need for more research on the treatment of kidneys which are affected by diabetes.
“Maximum patients undergoing dialysis in my clinic are diabetic. Even though it is possible to maintain the blood sugar levels, in some cases we see the progression of complications especially affecting the kidneys. With the early onset of type 2 diabetes, the challenge that diabetes poses is huge,” said Dr Patankar.
Effect on Heart
Dr Santosh Kumar Dora, a senior cardiologist at Asian Heart Institute, said that diabetes and cardiovascular diseases often appear as the two sides of a coin.
“On one side, diabetes mellitus has been rated as an equivalent of coronary heart disease, i.e. if you have diabetes and have never had a heart attack, you are at the same risk for cardiovascular complications as a person with no diabetes who previously had a heart attack. And conversely, many patients with established coronary heart disease suffer from diabetes,” said Dr Dora.
Dr Shirish Hiremath, Immediate Past President of Cardiological Society of India (CSI) and Director of Cath Lab, Ruby Hall Clinic, said that there is a need to establish specialised cardiovascular diseases (CVD) centres to evaluate underlying causes, modify their treatment accordingly and help in rehabilitating them to normalcy.
Effect on eyes
Dr Nitin Prabhudessai, Ophthalmologist and Vitreoretinal Surgeon at Prabhudessai Eye Clinic, said, “Vision loss is common in patients with diabetic retinopathy and with an increasing prevalence tied to the global epidemic in type 2 diabetes mellitus, there is a need for more patient awareness as people are not aware of disease treatment options.”
Sharing similar views, Dr Rahul Deshpande, Medical Director at HV Desai Eye Hospital, said, “It is important to understand the short term and long term consequences of diabetes on our eyes. The short effects include acute bacterial eye infections like delayed healing of corneal ulcers, dry eye syndrome due to corneal nerve affection while long term effects include Diabetic Retinopathy.”
“Childhood diabetes also has serious effects on eyes such as early onset of cataracts and other conditions, hence, parents should be extra cautious about the eye care of their children,” said Dr Deshpande.
Family and diabetes
Source: https://worlddiabetesday.org
