How Old Mutual views Diabetes
The Old Mutual medical team is dedicated to researching modern treatment
regimes, facilities and medical outcomes for a spectrum of conditions… our
research has identified much improved health outcomes for compliant diabetic patients.
We are proud to announce that, as Old Mutual, we can lead the industry and
adjust our underwriting approach to make the most of this knowledge!
Old Mutual underwriting requirements for type I and II diabetic clients now
include the following:
Measurement of HDL cholesterol levels
Determination of the presence of Microalbuminuria
Specific upgraded and more comprehensive diabetes questionnaire completed by the attending medical practitioner.
The above allows our underwriters and medical personnel to ascertain the
control of the diabetes and the risks more accurately. We can therefore offer the most appropriate terms for each individual diabetic client and, in some select instances, we may be able to offer standard rates!
Complications of Diabetes
Diabetes is associated with an increased risk for a number of serious, sometimes life-threatening complications and certain populations experience an even greater threat. Good diabetes management can help reduce the risk. However, many people are not even aware that they have diabetes until they develop one of its complications.
Heart disease and stroke
Heart disease and stroke account for about 65% of deaths in people with
diabetes.
Adults with diabetes have heart disease death rates about 2 to 4 times higher than adults without diabetes.
The risk for stroke is 2 to 4 times higher.
High blood pressure
About 70% of adults with diabetes have blood pressure greater than or equal to 130/80 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) or use prescription medications for hypertension.
Blindness
Diabetic retinopathy causes blindness and makes diabetes the leading cause
of new cases of blindness in adults 20-74 years of age.
Kidney disease
Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure.
Nervous system disease
About 60% to 70% of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of nervous system damage. The results of such damage include impaired sensation or pain in the feet or hands. Almost 30% of people with diabetes aged 40 years or older have impaired sensation in the feet .
Severe forms of diabetic nerve disease are a major contributing cause of lower extremity amputations.
Amputations
The rate of amputation for people with diabetes is 10 times higher than for
people without diabetes.
Dental disease
Periodontal (gum) disease is more common in people with diabetes. Among
young adults, those with diabetes have about twice the risk of those without
diabetes.
Complications of pregnancy
Poorly controlled diabetes before conception and during the first trimester of pregnancy can cause major birth defects.
Poorly controlled diabetes during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy can result in excessively large babies, posing a risk to both mother and child.
Sexual Dysfunction
Men with diabetes are 2 times as likely to experience erectile dysfunction as
men without diabetes.
Women with type 1 diabetes are twice as likely to experience prevalence of
sexual dysfunction compared with women without diabetes.
Other Uncontrolled diabetes often leads to biochemical imbalances that can cause acute life-threatening events, such as diabetic coma.
People with diabetes are more susceptible to many other illnesses, such as
influenza and pneumonia.
Treatment of Diabetes
Working together, people with diabetes and their health care providers can
reduce the occurrence of these and other diabetes complications by controlling the levels of blood glucose, blood pressure and blood lipids, and by receiving other preventive care practices in a timely manner.
Treatment of diabetes is aimed at lowering the blood glucose to a certain target point and maintaining it, as well as treating any associated risk factors that may complicate the picture.
Treatment starts by adjusting the patient’s lifestyle and may involve the use of tablets or insulin by injection.