Does COVID Affect Diabetics Differently?

At this point in the pandemic, we are all very aware of COVID symptoms and have unfortunately seen the spread of COVID in our communities. But did you know that if a person is a diabetic it can affect him or her differently?  

Are Diabetics More Likely to Get COVID?

People with diabetes are not necessarily more likely to get COVID as we do not have enough data to determine this. However, people with uncontrolled diabetes are more likely to have serious complications from COVID infection. Diabetics make up approximately 30-40% of people with COVID related hospitalizations.

The more health conditions a person has, in addition to diabetes, the higher the risk of complications of COVID. For instance, if an individual has diabetes and other underlying conditions such as, heart disease, kidney disease, uncontrolled blood pressure/cholesterol and obesity, the risk of complications is higher than someone who has diabetes alone.

Diabetics who are well controlled, have milder symptoms of a COVID infection.  However, viral infections will increase inflammation in the body which leads to elevated blood sugars. Therefore, the combination of increased inflammation and higher blood sugars can lead to more serious complications of COVID-19.

For a diabetic, one step to ensure prevention of serious consequences of COVID-19, is to maintain good communication with a diabetic care provider.

What is CMR Doing in the Office to Stay Safe?

At Chase Medical Research, we continue to take measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Again, we are now having everyone wear masks, regardless of vaccination status, when in common areas or around others. We are also sanitizing high touch areas frequently throughout the day and have patients fill out questionnaires as well as taking their temperatures upon arrival to our office. In addition, our staff will be tested once a week in the month of January.

Many of our patients are diabetic and have comorbidities, such as kidney disease (diabetes is one of the leading causes of kidney disease). That is what makes these protective and sanitary measures especially important!

Interested in Diabetic Trials?

References:

1. "Diabetes and covid-19: Population impact 18 months into the Pandemic." https://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/diacare/44/9/1916.full-text.pdf.
2. “Frequently Asked Questions: Covid-19 and Diabetes.” Frequently Asked Questions: COVID-19 and Diabetes | ADA, https://www.diabetes.org/coronavirus-covid-19/how-coronavirus-impacts-people-with-diabetes.