Since Frank Gold was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 1982 the number of people with the condition has skyrocketed.
"Estimates from the CDC show that there's been a doubling in prevalence from 1990 to 2005 and this is considered of epidemic proportions," says Dr. Rachel Whitmer from the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research.
Like many patients, Frank has managed his disease by tightly controlling his blood sugar levels with medicine and insulin -- until recently.
"Four months ago the procedure has changed to allow me to have a higher blood sugar," he says.
That's because new research has found severe levels of low blood sugar -- called hypoglycemia -- could impact future risk of dementia in type 2 diabetes patients.
"This is a very important question to answer because we are expected to see a doubling of prevalence in dementia in the next 50 years and if the CDC estimate holds true, we will also see more type 2 diabetes," says Dr. Whitmer.
Dr. Whitmer led the study that appears in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Her team analyzed the medical records of more than 16,000 elderly patients from 1980 to 2007.
"We were able to look historically at their records and see who had a very severe episode of hypoglycemia and whether it was associated with an outcome in late life," she says.
Out of the group, 1,500 patients had one or more serious hypoglycemic episodes. Nearly 17 per cent of those patients were eventually diagnosed with dementia compared to only 10 per cent of patients with no history of hypoglycemia.
"It really adds to the evidence base out there that perhaps very low glycemic targets might not be the best way to go in elderly patients with type 2," says Dr. Whitmer.
"I've known that hypoglycemia is very bad, loosening up on the insulin hopefully this will keep dementia from springing up," says Frank.
Identifying this important link is one step toward that goal.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Dr. Rhonda Low
