|
Implication
of using estimated glomerular
filtration rate (GFR) in a multi
ethnic population of diabetes
patients in general practice
Grace Joshy, Tesa Porter, Clem Le
Lievre, Jane Lane, Mike Williams,
Ross Lawrenson
This study looked at
the prevalence of chronic kidney
disease among diabetes patients in
New Zealand. Estimated Glomerular
Filtration Rate (eGFR) is
increasingly used as a marker for
identifying early renal failure.
This study measured the agreement
between two equations commonly used
in the calculation of eGFR. There
were significant differences in
agreement between the two equations:
the MDRD and the CG. While CG
equation identifies more European of
both genders, more Māori females
were identified by MDRD. MDRD
equation may be overestimating CKD
among Māori females. Each ethnic
subpopulation may need to be
validated separately, and by gender.
Ethnic
disparities in causes of death among
diabetes patients in the Waikato
region of New Zealand
Grace Joshy, Chanukya Kamalinie
Colonne, Peter Dunn, David Simmons,
Ross Lawrenson
Maori diabetes
patients experienced significantly
higher risk of mortality compared
with Europeans with diabetes.
Compared with European diabetes
patients, Maori diabetes patients
are more likely to die from
cardiovascular disease, cancer and
renal disease. Maori with diabetes
are more likely than Europeans with
diabetes to have diabetes reported
on death certificates. The results
suggest that the under-coding of
diabetes on death certificates in
New Zealand has not improved and
continues to be a major limitation
for routine mortality analysis
solely based on these codes.
Mortality among diabetes patients in
New Zealand would need to be
compared with that among people
without known diabetes, to estimate
the true burden due to diabetes.
Exploring
physical and psychological wellbeing
among adults with Type 2 diabetes in
New Zealand: identifying a need to
improve the experiences of Pacific
peoples
Charlotte A M Paddison
In this study we
explored levels of physical and
psychological wellbeing among adults
with Type 2 diabetes in New Zealand.
Our results showed that the majority
(58%) of people in this study had
difficulty achieving good control of
their diabetes and did not meet the
clinical targets set by health
professionals. We already know that
physical health outcomes for people
with Type 2 diabetes vary by
ethnicity; our study shows that
psychological outcomes such as
diabetes-related distress also
differ across ethnic groups—with
Pacific peoples worst affected. Our
findings show that we need to
improve the experiences of Pacific
peoples with Type 2 diabetes. This
includes improving metabolic
control, and also working with
Pacific patients to address any
concerns about medication and to
reduce emotional distress about
diabetes.
Standardisation of reporting
haemoglobin A1c: adoption of the New
Zealand Society for the Study of
Diabetes (NZSSD) position statement
Chris Florkowski, Michael Crooke
New Zealand, in line
with other countries has now
implemented a system of new units
for reporting HbA1c for monitoring
long-term glucose control in
diabetes. Our paper traces the
background and rationale for this
important change.
How well does
routine hospitalisation data capture
information on comorbidity in New
Zealand?
Diana Sarfati, Sarah Hill, Gordon
Purdie, Elizabeth Dennett , Tony
Blakely
Comorbidity refers to
diseases or disorders that coexist
with a disease of interest.
Comorbidity is common and it is
being increasingly recognised as
being important in health-related
research and policy. This paper
compares routinely collected
comorbidity data (collected by
coders based in District Health
Boards and sent electronically to NZ
Health Information Systems) with
comorbidity data collected directly
from patients’ hospital notes by a
physician. We found that although
(expected) differences in these two
sources of data exist,
administrative data provides a
useful and relatively accessible
source of information on comorbidity
in New Zealand.
A
population-based approach to the
estimation of diabetes prevalence
and health resource utilisation
James Smith, Gary Jackson, Brandon
Orr-Walker, Rod Jackson, Siniva
Sinclair, Simon Thornley, Tania
Riddell, Wing Cheuk Chan
This study showed
that diabetes is common in Counties
Manukau and throughout the northern
region, particularly in Māori and
Pacific communities. It combined
data that is normally used for
administrative purposes with two
other sets of data, to look at
diabetes rates and the use of
healthcare resources. All data were
adjusted to avoid identification of
individuals. This method has the
advantage of providing comprehensive
information about diabetes in a way
that is timelier and less expensive
than traditional survey methods,
allowing better planning for the
diabetes epidemic.
|