Diabetes Linked to Earlier Cognitive Impairment and Shortened Life Expectancy

Individuals with diabetes have a higher risk of cognitive impairment, and have a shorter life expectancy with and without cognitive impariment, a recent study showed.

During the study, the researchers evaluated linked data on the 2000-2012 U.S. Health and Retirement and the National Death Index (n = 13,687).
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Diabetes status-specific transition probabilities were estimated via multinomial regression models, which accounted for gender and age. A Markov chain matrix population model was used to determine age at onset of cognitive impairment, as well as life expectancy with or without cognitive impairment based on diabetes status at age 50 years.

Life expectancy at age 50 was determined to be 27.6 years for men and 32.1 years for women. Results indicated that men and women with diabetes first experienced cognitive impairment 3 and 4 years earlier, respectively, than those without diabetes. Furthermore, diabetes was found to cut total life expectancy by 5 to 7 years and cognitively-healthy life expectancy by 4 to 6 years.

The researchers noted that patients with diabetes lived 1 fewer year in a cognitively impaired state vs those without diabetes, and that more than 80% of the lower life expectancy associated with diabetes could be attributed to the loss of cognitively-healthy years.

“Those with diabetes have a shorter [life expectancy] with cognitive impairment because of higher mortality,” the researchers concluded. “The excess mortality because of diabetes may be decreasing. If the mortality decline is not coupled with a comparable decline in the risk of cognitive impairment, the population level burden of impaired cognition may grow larger.”

—Christina Vogt

Reference:

Díaz-Venegas C, Schneider DC, Myrskylä M, Mehta NK. Life expectancy with and without cognitive impairment by diabetes status among older Americans [Published online December 29, 2017]. PLOS One. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0190488.