U.S. notes rise in female diabetic deaths

Female diabetics in the United States are dying at higher rates than 30 years ago, while the rate for diabetic males is declining, federal research shows.

The researchers, led by Edward Gregg of the Centers for Disease Control, analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for nearly 100,000 participants interviewed between 1971 and 1974, a second group surveyed between 1976 and 1980 and a third group surveyed from 1988 to 1994.

Death rates from all causes decreased by 43 percent among diabetic men, from 42.6 to 24.4 deaths per 1,000 per year. For diabetic women, the all-cause mortality rate increased 41 percent, from 18.4 to 25.9 per 1,000, the Chicago Tribune reported.

Dr. Nanette Wenger of Emory University, who wrote an editorial accompanying the study, speculated that women with diabetes and heart disease are less likely than men to seek and receive appropriate care, such as the use of cholesterol-lowering drugs.

The study is published online in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International

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