80 per cent of youngsters missing key diabetes checks

A report highlighted at Diabetes UK’s Annual Professional Conference reveals that 80% of teenagers and young adults are missing out on the essential diabetes health checks which they should receive.
The report looked at young adults aged between 16 and 24 years old, and found that only one in five were receiving each of the 15 health checks recommended by NICE (The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence).
Charity Diabetes UK is keen to point out that complications associated with poor blood glucose control are not limited to older people, with health problems such as neuropathy and retinopathy also affecting significant numbers of youngsters. One of the factors, which the charity believes may lead to insufficient health checks being carried out, is related to the transition of care from paediatric clinics to adult clinics. The charity observes that transitions from child to adult clinics are currently not as smooth as they should be.
Simon O’Neill, Director of Care, Policy and Intelligence at Diabetes UK, states: “By improving healthcare at this stage of life, the NHS can help prevent the huge emotional and financial cost of them developing complications such as heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, blindness and amputation.”