Deaths of Over 3,000 Diabetics in U.K. Attributed to COVID Lockdowns

Lack of access to in-person health care credited.

QUICK FACTS:
  • COVID-19 lockdowns are being blamed for the deaths of more than 3,000 people in the UK.
  • A National Health Service (NHS) study suggests that the lack of in-person diabetes checks kept diabetes sufferers from being screened for deadly complications, according to The Telegraph.
  • Researchers suggested that the move to remote healthcare kept patients from being checked for cardiac problems, infections, and other potentially life-threatening issues.
STUDY FINDINGS:
  • The study showed that the impact of the lockdown was that many patients with diabetes had “absolutely devastating” consequences, due in part to the fact that they were “pushed to the back of the queue,” for healthcare.
  • In the just over 15 weeks researched, the non-COVID-related death rate for diabetes patients rose by 11%, which was equivalent to an extra 3,075 deaths from other fatalities, like heart disease.
BACKGROUND:
  • The study was led by Prof Jonathan Valabhji, the national clinical director for diabetes and obesity for NHS England, who strongly links the rise in deaths to a fall in care the previous year.
  • The study found that in 2020/21 only about one-quarter of diabetes patients received their full set of checkups, compared to almost half who received them the year before.

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