Emerging Epidemic: Diabetes in Older Adults: Demography, Economic Impact, and Pathophysiology

Abstract

In Brief Diabetes has a major impact on both affected individuals and society in general, with a total cost in excess of $132 billion annually not to mention the its associated increased morbidity and lost quality-of-life years. This article discusses some of the major studies that have attempted to quantitate the cost of diabetes and reviews the pathophysiology and disease sequellae commonly found in older people with diabetes.