Many Diabetics Not Getting Life-Saving Blood Pressure Treatment

June 23, 2008— -- A bit more bad news for diabetics that you may not have known: having a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes makes your risk of having a heart attack just the same as someone who already had a heart attack. This means it is automatically assumed that with diabetes, there may be hidden heart disease as well.

In addition, a worldwide study of over 21,000 patients with diabetes found that vigorously controlling your blood sugar to get your blood sugar levels into near normal range did not lower the risk of heart attack or heart disease. For some patients, tight control of blood sugar led to more episodes of dangerously low blood sugar too.

So what is a patient with diabetes to do to lower the risk of heart attack?

It turns out that controlling your blood pressure is perhaps the single most important thing you can do to reduce many of the complications from diabetes. The dangers of high blood pressure — even a few points above normal — are much greater for diabetics.

The risks of heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and progressive blood vessel disease of the eyes that, if left untreated, can lead to blindness are all made greater when the blood pressure is high. Other conditions more common in diabetics, such as impotence and poor circulation to the legs, are also much worse with poorly controlled high blood pressure.

So why is it that, according to a number of studies, less then half the time doctors see a diabetic patient do the doctors make suggestions to change blood pressure medication or ask patients to come back for a blood pressure follow up — even when so much is on the line? And why do patients with diabetes all too often not know their blood pressure goals, fail to act on their own home blood pressure readings, or do not know exactly what their medications may do?

Studies note that doctors often fail to ask patients about monitoring their blood pressure at home. Home readings may give a better picture of how well your blood pressure is being controlled. Some patients don't even check or monitor their blood pressure at home.

Regardless of why your doctor may not always suggest changes to better control your blood pressure, it is YOUR JOB to see that your blood pressure is as close to target range for you as possible. In the end, it is your health that is on the line and you need to be in charge of it!