About Diabetic Complications

The Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), a landmark ten-year study of the impact of good blood sugar control on complications associated with type 1 diabetes, found that for every 1 percentage point a patient reduces their A1C (i.e., three-month blood glucose average), they lower their risk of microvascular complications 37%. The study also found that keeping blood sugar levels as close to normal as possible slowed the progression of diabetes-related eye, kidney, and nerve diseases.

A ten-year study of over 5,000 patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes – The United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) – found that the diabetes-related complications of retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy were reduced significantly in study subjects with type 2 diabetes who practiced intensive blood glucose control (i.e., a median A1C of 7%). In addition, for every percentage point reduction in A1C, study participants achieved a 35% reduction in the risk of complications. The UKPDS also found that aggressive control of high blood pressure significantly reduced cardiovascular complications and diabetic retinopathy in people with type 2 diabetes.