THE socio-demographic factors that increase the risk of developing diabetes “are advanced age, almost 8 times higher among those over 74 (compared to 45-54 year olds), male sex, so much so that men have a higher risk than women of about 40% for the same age, living in the South, with a higher probability of about 50% compared to those living in the North and in municipalities with more than 2,000 inhabitants”. This is what emerges from the report ‘Data on diabetes in Italy, a snapshot of a complex and constantly evolving pandemic’, presented in the Senate in Rome during the 17th Italian Barometer Diabetes Summit.
The data
In Italy “There are approximately 3.9 million people who declared having diabetes in 2022, or 6.6% of the populationand projections – the report highlights – indicate that in 2040 this percentage could reach 10%, if the observed trend continues combined with the significant impact of the demographic dynamics of the next twenty years”.
“Uniformity of the diabetes service throughout the country, access to new drugs and new technologies, strengthening of local healthcare, diabetes socio-healthcare network”: these are some of the key points highlighted by the president of Fand-Associazione italiana diabetici, Emilio Augusto Benini, who spoke at the event organized, on the initiative of Senator Daniela Sbrollini, in collaboration with the Parliamentary Intergroup for Obesity, Diabetes and Chronic Non-Communicable Diseases, the Italian Barometer Diabetes Observatory Foundation (IBdo Foundation), Istat, University of Rome Tor Vergata – Department of Systems Medicine, Coresearch, Crea Sanità, Bhave, with the unconditional contribution of Novo Nordisk.
“The importance of the report presented today, which, like every year, returns the diabetes scenario in our country, is to highlight the numbers of an emergency to identify priority interventions – explained Benini – First of all, as already underlined by the Fand Manifesto ‘More territory less hospital’, the importance of ensuring uniformity throughout the national territory of the diabetes service. Strong investments are needed in technology, in the electronic health record, in telemedicine and in all those useful and necessary tools for an effective integration of the systems. This is an aspect in which I would like to underline the important role that the diabetic guide can have, a project that Fand has been carrying out for years with a course recognized as excellent at an international level, a figure that can represent a valid help in teleassistance, such as in diabetes services and community homes”.
“At the same time, important to promote access to new drugs and new technologies – continues the president of Fand – as the new weekly insulin approved by Ema, but not yet by Aifa, which represents a revolution in the way of managing basal insulin, simplifying the method of administering the therapy. A revolution that allows to go from 365 injections to 52 per year, freeing the person with diabetes from the need to perform an injection every day, with an important positive psychological return, given that it is often the large quantity of injections needed that induces a form of refusal with respect to the therapy”.
“In addition to this, we need to develop assistance at a territorial level as per Ministerial Decree 77 – Benini underlines – We cannot waste the unique opportunity of the Pnrr for a strengthening of the territory, or for assistance that is more tailored to people with diabetes and their daily lives. We need to develop a path in which, without the territory impoverishing the role of the hospital, an integration is implemented, with the strengthening of diabetes centers and their team, of the role of general practitioners, community homes and the pharmacy of services, while providing an IT system that is able to support it”.
“At the same time, it is important to promote a holistic approach: Fand – concludes the president – together with a working group whose referent is Dr. Paola Pisanti, former president of the National Diabetes Commission of the Ministry of Health, is carrying out a project on the diabetes socio-health network. People with diabetes, in fact, need not only treatment, but also support with respect to everything that concerns the social aspect, where the social services of the municipalities obviously have a fundamental role in supporting fragile people, and the hope is that the implementation of this project can be supported in the best possible way”.
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