Drop Seen in Rate of End-Stage Kidney Disease in Diabetics

THURSDAY, Oct. 28 (HealthDay News) — The rate of new cases of end-stage kidney disease requiring dialysis among Americans diagnosed with diabetes fell 35 percent between 1996 and 2007, a new study has found.

The age-adjusted rate of end-stage kidney disease, also known as end-stage renal disease (ESRD), that was linked to diabetes declined from 304.5 to about 199 per 100,000 people during that time. The declining rates occurred in all regions and in most states.

No state had a significant increase in the age-adjusted rate of new cases of the condition, the researchers report in the Oct. 29 issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

ESRD, which is kidney failure requiring dialysis or transplantation, is a costly and disabling condition that can lead to premature death. Diabetes is the leading cause of ESRD in the United States and accounted for 44 percent of the approximately 110,000 cases that began treatment in 2007.

However, the CDC notes that the rate of diabetes among Americans rose steeply during the study period. So, while the rate of new ESRD cases linked to diabetes dropped between 1996 and 2007, the actual number of cases increased significantly. The findings come from an analysis of data from the U.S. Renal Data System and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.

During that time, the total number of adults aged 18 and older who began treatment for diabetes-linked ESRD each year increased from 32,716 to 48,712.

The study also found that about 40 percent of new cases of ESRD tied to diabetes in 2007 occurred in the South and about 20 percent occurred in each of the other three regions of the country. However, the rate in 2007 was highest in the West (219.2 per 100,000), followed by the South (199.1), Puerto Rico (196.3), the Midwest (194.2), and the Northeast (182.6).

“Continued awareness and interventions to reduce the prevalence of risk factors for kidney failure and to improve diabetes care are needed to sustain the decrease in [diabetes-linked] ESRD incidence,” the researchers concluded.

November is American Diabetes Month.

More information

The National Kidney Foundation has more about diabetes and kidney disease.