Men Face More Diabetes Complications Than Women

FRIDAY, May 17, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Men with diabetes have a greater risk for complications than women, irrespective of diabetes duration, according to a study published online May 16 in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.

Alice A. Gibson, from the University of Sydney, and colleagues investigated sex differences in incident microvascular and macrovascular complications among adults with diabetes. The analysis included 25,713 individuals (aged 45 years and older and with diabetes) participating in the 45 and Up Study.

The researchers found that age-adjusted incidence rates were 37 per 1,000 person-years for cardiovascular disease (CVD), 52 for eye, 21 for lower limb, and 32 for kidney complications. Compared with women, men had a greater risk for CVD (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.51), lower limb (aHR, 1.47), and kidney complications (aHR, 1.55), as well as a greater risk for diabetic retinopathy (aHR, 1.14). Over 10 years, 44 percent of men experienced a CVD complication, 57 percent an eye complication, 25 percent a lower-limb complication, and 35 percent a kidney complication compared with 31, 61, 18, and 25 percent of women, respectively. There was no substantial effect of diabetes duration (<10 versus ≥10 years) on sex differences in complications.

"Given the high rates of complication in both sexes, this study highlights the importance of targeted complication screening and prevention strategies from the time of diagnosis," the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text