Hospitals have had to admit growing numbers of patients for hypoglycaemia in the last decade, according to a new study.
Researchers at Leicester University have found a 39% increase in admissions in the last decade.
They called for national initiatives to tackle the problem.
According to Professor Kamlesh Khunti, who oversaw the research, the increase is probably not all caused by the increasing numbers of people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
The researchers found there were 7,868 admissions in 2005.
This increased to 11,756 in 2010 and dropped a little to 10,977 in 2014, they reported in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology.
The researchers say each episode costs about £1,000 – and the total annual cost to the NHS of these hospital admissions is £13 million.
Professor Khunti said: “Given the continuous rise of diabetes prevalence, ageing population, and costs associated with hypoglycaemia, individual and national initiatives should be implemented to reduce the burden of hospital admissions for hypos.”
Researcher Dr Francesco Zaccardi said: “Studies in the USA and Canada have reported increasing or stable rates of hospital admissions for hypoglycaemia.
“With this study we gathered information about long-term trends in hospital admission for hypoglycaemia and subsequent outcomes in England to help widen understanding for the global burden of hospitalisation for hypoglycaemia.”
The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology July 2016
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