THURSDAY, Nov. 1 (HealthDay News) -- Medical care for people with diabetes has vastly improved over the last several decades, which is reflected by an improvement in survival rates among children; however, there is still room for improvement, according to research published in the Nov. 2 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity & Mortality Weekly Report.
Sharon Saydah, Ph.D., of the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues analyzed data from the National Vital Statistics System to estimate trends in diabetes-related mortality in the United States over the last 40 years.
The researchers found that, from 1968-1969 to 2008-2009, deaths for which diabetes was identified as the underlying cause had decreased 61 percent in people 19 years of age or younger. The percentage decrease was most significant among children under 10 years of age, for whom it fell by 78 percent. The decrease among older youths (10 to 19 years), however, fell by only 52 percent.
"These findings demonstrate improvements in diabetes mortality among youths but also indicate a need for continued improvement in diabetes diagnosis and care," the authors write.
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