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. 2022 Jun;37(3):466-474.
doi: 10.3803/EnM.2022.1440. Epub 2022 Jun 29.

Improvement in Age at Mortality and Changes in Causes of Death in the Population with Diabetes: An Analysis of Data from the Korean National Health Insurance and Statistical Information Service, 2006 to 2018

Eugene Han  1 , Sun Ok Song  2 , Hye Soon Kim  1 , Kang Ju Son  3 , Sun Ha Jee  4 , Bong-Soo Cha  5 , Byung-Wan Lee  5
Affiliations

Improvement in Age at Mortality and Changes in Causes of Death in the Population with Diabetes: An Analysis of Data from the Korean National Health Insurance and Statistical Information Service, 2006 to 2018

Eugene Han et al. Endocrinol Metab (Seoul). 2022 Jun.

Abstract

Backgruound: Diabetes is a leading cause of death that is responsible for 1.6 million annual deaths worldwide. However, the life expectancy and age at death of people with diabetes have been a matter of debate.

Methods: The National Health Insurance Service claims database, merged with death records from the National Statistical Information Service in Korea from 2006 to 2018, was analyzed.

Results: In total, 1,432,567 deaths were collected. The overall age at death increased by 0.44 and 0.26 year/year in the diabetes and control populations, respectively. The disparity in the mean age at death between the diabetes and control populations narrowed from 5.2 years in 2006 to 3.0 years in 2018 (p<0.001). In a subgroup analysis according to the presence of comorbid diseases, the number and proportion of deaths remained steady in the group with diabetes only, but steadily increased in the groups with diabetes combined with dyslipidemia and/or hypertension. Compared to the control population, the increase in the mean death age was higher in the population with diabetes. This trend was more prominent in the groups with dyslipidemia and/or hypertension than in the diabetes only group. Deaths from vascular disease and diabetes decreased, whereas deaths from cancer and pneumonia increased. The decline in the proportion of deaths from vascular disease was greater in the diabetes groups with hypertension and/or dyslipidemia than in the control population.

Conclusion: The age at death in the population with diabetes increased more steeply and reached a comparable level to those without diabetes.

Keywords: Cardiovascular diseases; Diabetes mellitus; Epidemiology; Mortality; Neoplasms.

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Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Flow diagram of subject inclusion and exclusion in the Korean National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) claims database and National Statistical Information Service (NSIS).
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Changes in age of death among individuals with diabetes and controls. (A) Overall, (B) men, (C) women.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Changes in age of death among controls and individuals with diabetes according to the presence of comorbidities. (A) Overall, (B) men, (C) women. Group I, diabetes only; Group II, diabetes with dyslipidemia; Group III, diabetes with hypertension; Group IV, diabetes with both hypertension and dyslipidemia. Compared to the control population, the increases in the mean death age were higher by 0.16, 0.33, 0.23, and 0.26 year/year for Groups I, II, III, and IV, respectively (all P<0.001).
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Age-standardized mortality rate in individuals with diabetes and controls. (A) Control, (B) diabetes.
None
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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