Diabetes mellitus - A special medical challenge from a Chinese perspective

As we enter the new millennium, Asia is being hit by an epidemic of diabete s and its related diseases. The rising prevalence of voting onset diabetes which is closely associated with obesity and genetic factors as well as the increased propensity to develop kidney disease are special challenges in t he management of Chinese diabetic patients. Although diabetic patients have earlier mortality and increased risks for micro and macrovascular complica tions, there is strong evidence that these devastating complications can be largely prevented by patient education, periodic assessments and use of ap propriate therapeutic agents to optimize metabolic control and improve card iovascular risk factors. However, a multidisciplinary approach is often req uired to deliver these complex disease management protocols. Hence, it is n ot surprising that large scale studies often revealed substandard diabetes management in both the hospital and community settings. This is often due t o a combination of factors such as non-adherence to recommended guidelines both by patients and doctors as well as the 'non-urgent' and 'silent nature ' of diabetes and its complications. To minimize the impacts of diabetes on quality of life, society productivity and utilization of health care resou rces. concerted efforts between health care professionals and public bodies are urgently needed to increase awareness, improve standards of care and d evelop better diagnostics and treatment modalities. (C) 2001 Elsevier Scien ce Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.