Now, keep up to date
with daily feeds of newly posted stories
about America's Seniors...click on the box
to the left
Age-Related Conditions develop Faster in
adults with Diabetes
Newswise, April 10, 2011 — Middle-aged
adults with diabetes are much more likely to
develop age-related conditions than their
counterparts who don’t have diabetes,
according to a new study by the University
of Michigan Health System and VA Ann Arbor
Healthcare System.
Adults between 51 and 70 with diabetes
developed age-related ailments like
cognitive impairment, incontinence, falls,
dizziness, vision impairment and pain at a
faster rate than those without diabetes, the
study found. Results were published in the
March issue of the Journal
of General Internal Medicine.
“Our findings suggest that middle age adults
with diabetes start to accumulate these
age-related problems,” says lead author
Christine Cigolle, M.D., M.P.H., an
assistant professor of family medicine and
internal medicine at the U-M Medical School
and research scientist at the VA. “Because
diabetes affects multiple organ systems, it
has the potential to contribute
significantly to the development of a number
of issues that we associate with aging.”
For adults aged 51-60 with diabetes, the
odds of developing new geriatric conditions
were nearly double those of their
counterparts who didn’t have diabetes, the
researchers found. By the time people with
and without diabetes reach 80, the overall
effects of aging and impact of other
diseases start to reduce the disparities
between the two groups.
The research was based on nationally
representative data from the University of
Michigan Health and Retirement Study.
“The findings suggest that adults with
diabetes should be monitored for the
development of these conditions beginning at
a younger age than we previously thought,”
says Cigolle, also a research assistant
professor at the U-M Institute of
Gerontology.
“If we know to start looking for these
conditions earlier, we can manage and treat
them more effectively,” she adds.
Funding: The research was supported by the
National Institute on Aging, National
Institutes of Health, Ann Arbor VA Geriatric
Research, Education and Clinical Center,
John A. Hartford Foundation Center of
Excellence in Geriatrics at the University
of Michigan and Claude D. Pepper Older
Americans Independence Center at the
University of Michigan.
Additional authors: Pearl G. Lee, M.D.;
Kenneth M. Langa, M.D., Ph.D.; Yuo-Yu Lee,
M.S.; Zhiyi Tian, M.S.; and Caroline S.
Blaum, M.D., M.S., all of U-M. Lee, Langa
and Blaum also have VA appointments.
... ..
...
...
