[Epidemiological features of type 2 diabetes]

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) represents more than 90% of whole diabetes in the world. Thus T2D prevalence can be estimated as all types diabetes prevalence in a proxy approach. In subjects aged 20 or older, its prevalence reached 4.0% in 1995 and was expected to increase to 5.4% in 2025. In number of diabetic patients, it means they were 135 millions in 1995 and should be 300 millions in 2025. Moreover, these estimates by WHO, based only upon the expected demographic evolution, did not take into account expected changes in obesity prevalence and thus underevaluate what should occur. The increase in diabetic patients number should provide mainly from developing countries, in particular India and China, where more than 75% of diabetic patients will live in 2025, compared to 62% in 1995. In France, pharmacologically treated diabetes prevalence reached 3.95% in 2007, with 2.5 millions diabetic patients, around 92% of them having T2D. The overwhelming increase of obesity is the first cause of "diabetes epidemics", while ageing of the population, with a longer life expectancy, is the other main contributor Prevention of T2D needs to have lifestyle modifications implemented at the population level, not an easy task.