Comparing the disease profiles of adult patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus attending four public health care facilities in Malaysia

Abstract

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus in Malaysia is rising. It was less than 10% in the last century, increased to about 15% in the first decade of the 21st century and further increased up to more than 20% in the recent National Health Morbidity Survey 2011.1,2 This translates to a staggering number of 3 million patients with diabetes mellitus. This epidemic is not specific to this country; in fact it is widely reported worldwide, and about one-third of a billion of world population is now living with diabetes.3 The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) has classified diabetes mellitus as an “international disaster” and the United Nation Summit in 2011 passed the political declaration to curb diabetes and other non-communicable diseases.

Keywords

• type 2 diabetes mellitus
• primary health care
• health facilities
• disease management
• diabetes complications