Almost 60% of people with diabetes are not meeting cholesterol targets, despite the majority getting it checked at least once a year, according to an analysis of National Diabetes Audit data by Diabetes UK.
The large numbers of people missing cholesterol targets suggests that the annual checks are not leading to improved outcomes for many patients. The charity is calling for healthcare professionals and people with diabetes to ensure that the annual diabetes health check leads to meaningful action to bring high cholesterol under control.
“It is not clear why the high number of people having their annual cholesterol check is not translating into better cholesterol control,” said Barbara Young, Chief Executive of Diabetes UK, “but it is an issue that is putting the health of hundreds of thousands of people at risk.
“It will often be appropriate to prescribe medication such as statins, but it is no good doing this without explaining the importance of taking the medication regularly and the potentially devastating consequences of not doing so,” she added. “If people with diabetes have poor cholesterol control then they are at far higher risk of heart disease and stroke than someone who has poor cholesterol control but does not have diabetes.”
