The non-communicable diseases (NCD) clinics in the district have detected over 4,000 new diabetes cases this year.
Going by the data collected from NCD clinics that are held every Thursday of the week, 4,334 new cases have been detected out of 2,21,960 people screened so far in 2014-15. Dr. V.S. Dalia, nodal officer for NCD programme in the district, told The Hindu that the clinics had become very popular among the people. A patient showing high blood sugar levels are advised on lifestyle modifications and referred to the PHC to get their fasting sugar tested. If the sugar levels are high, the patients are advised to get the HbA1c (glucose attached Haemoglobin subtype) test done to get an idea about the glucose-level variations in the blood for the last three months. Medicines are prescribed only when a patient is confirmed with diabetes, said Dr. Dalia. People with pre-diabetic conditions are advised to get regular check ups after adopting lifestyle modifications, she added.
Though the programme is not in force in taluk-level hospitals, many hospitals are providing screening and medicines for patients every Thursday after they go through a referral system.
Even with high numbers of diabetic patients, the Health department in the district is yet to set up a facility to treat diabetes complications such as heart diseases, kidney diseases or retinal blindness.
