Diabetic Complications

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Permalink Reply by Gerri on February 7, 2010 at 2:09pm

In case this helps, there are members here who've had diabetes longer than 28 years & are healthy without complications. One is a Joslin Medalist (an award given by a well-known US diabetes center) who has had diabetes for 50 years & is complication free.

Personally, I think stats can be quite misleading & unnecessarily frightening. To say that X number of people will potentially develop X complications at a certain age after having diabetes for certain length of time doesn't tell the whole picture. Stats don't show how well people have managed this disease & the level of medical care they've received.

Stats do underscore that lower A1cs are our best route to avoiding complications, if you feel yours is too high. Hard not to worry & this is ever present in my mind, but I just keep doing my best to keep A1c down. And, I hope & cross my fingers a lot, too!

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Permalink Reply by bsc on February 7, 2010 at 2:30pm

The DCCT found fairly high rates of complications in t1s after 30 yrs. More recent studies show that with more intensive management, rates are markedly lower (http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/707131).

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Permalink Reply by barb whiton on February 7, 2010 at 3:02pm

Have had Diabetes for almost 36 years and so far few complications. Thyroid is a bit off kilter and on smallest dose of meds and I only recently felt some tingling in one foot but it comes and goes, mostly not there and my stomach has never worked quite right but my Dr. has said that if after so many years (can't remember the number) if you don't have complications you probably won't. I think good control is key and I think some people are just prone to complications. Just my guess. If you're good after 28 years and keep up the good control then I don't think you should worry too much. Hope this helps some. I recently have been worrying a bit more about the same thing. Mostly due to getting older too I think.

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Permalink Reply by Chris UK on February 7, 2010 at 3:18pm

Thanks Barb, your info was helpful. Confusing part i find is that they give us a reduced lifespan of 5 to 10 yrs which means i should live to ave age of around 70. And as type 1 is usually juvenile started why is 20, 30, or 40 yrs such a surprise to people. Chris

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Permalink Reply by Zoe on February 7, 2010 at 3:47pm

I think, Chris that the statistics such as reduced lifespan, etc are based on everyone, whether they ignore their diabetes or have excellent control. So I think the reassuring part of it is that we do have choices in how well we maintain our blood sugars (to a degree, of course), so that means we have control over the outcomes. I know there are no guarantees but the better control we have over time the less chance of complications.If I was into studies and statistics about diabetes I would want to read those studies, like mentioned above that took A1C into account!

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Permalink Reply by S Woodward on February 7, 2010 at 3:58pm

I agree, with 40 years and only the thyroid thing, I feel there is not a limit if I take care of myself. There are stats coming out now that show that T1Ds, with experience (20+ I think) who are tightly controlled have FAR less complications than those with less years under their belt and are not tightly controlled.

I you keep on going and screw the stats. Chris is right, we have so much on the way of insulins, pumps, BG meters, CGMs, etc, the stats are getting blown out of the water.

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Rawlings on February 7, 2010 at 4:02pm

Oooh--thanks for the new t-shirt slogan

Type 1: Screw the Stats

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Rawlings on February 7, 2010 at 3:55pm

Hi, Chris!

Studies do show a correlation between years with type 1 diabetes and increased complications. As others have pointed out. people with lower A1Cs seem to fair better. The "best' group in the DCCT trial had average A1C of 7.08 (but that's only an average, and only for duration of study).

Genetic tendencies toward certain complications--family history of high triglycerides and other forms of heart disease, family history of cataracts (separate from diabetes)--can mean that you carry more risk for those issues on top of the added risk of these things because of diabetes.

But the more I get involved with social networks, the more I run across people in their 30th, 40th, 50th year with very few problems.

I don't tend to use the term "complications free," because long-livers with diabetes usually have a few subtle signs (such as the background retinopathy I closely monitor). Sometimes I suspect those are just to help us keep on keepin' on with as tight control as we can safely achieve.

For some reason, eye complications and nerve damage/amputations tend to get all the attention, but really it's heart health (macrovascular) and kidney disease that are of greatest concern when it comes to life expectancy. That's why, in addition to glucose control, it is so critical to make sure blood pressure, blood lipids (cholesterol and triglycerides), eye health, and kidney health are frequently and closely monitored.

Best wishes and I look forward to continuing this conversation for the next 20, 30, 40 years or so!

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Permalink Reply by S Woodward on February 7, 2010 at 4:15pm

Here is an article with the info that was published in July '09.
http://www.boston.com/news/health/blog/2009/07/post_27.html

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Rawlings on February 7, 2010 at 4:18pm

Nathan said it best in that piece: "The challenge we have going forward is to make this even easier and [more] accessible so there isn't anyone who misses out on the opportunity to live a long and healthy life," he said.

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Permalink Reply by JohnG on February 7, 2010 at 4:11pm

Most T3's have very little knowledge when it comes to Diabetes.

Example: Someone finds out I have diabetes, they say--- "I would have never known", then they see my
pump and the next words out of their mouths is --"Oh it's that bad"

I'm not going to worry about it, every day I'm just going to lean into it and do the best I can.

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Permalink Reply by S Woodward on February 7, 2010 at 10:19pm

My understanding is that T3s are those who care for and/or live with the T1D challenge along with the T1D. The are not the occasional person or non-D that we encounter.

The Type 3 are our friends and family.

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