Diabetes is pandemic in Mid East - World Health Organisation

The stark warning came yesterday from Dr. Oussama Khatib, Regional Advisor, Non-Communicable Diseases, World Health Organisation, Egypt, who presented a paper at Arab Health, the Middle East's leading hospital, medical equipment and services exhibition and conference being held at Dubai International Exhibition Centre (DIEC) until January 21.

Dr Khatib said the region has more than 3.5 million diabetes type II sufferers. The disease is the fourth largest cause of death in the region.

He said children as young as ten were being diagnosed with the disease, the main cause being treatable obesity, coupled with physical inactivity, unhealthy diets and hypertension. In Bahrain, Kuwait and the UAE, 25-30% of the population is obese.

"This problem is now at pandemic proportions, and is a great burden in terms of cost. This is no longer a problem for the individual sufferer, it is a problem for society, for government, it's a huge social challenge," said Dr Khatib.

He called on policy makers to introduce immediate public health programmes to increase awareness of the disease - which is both preventable and manageable.

But in extreme cases, Diabetes Type II can lead to blindness, organ transplants, amputations and death.

While seven regional countries have launched National Diabetes Programmes, from Lebanon to Saudi Arabia, the doctor suggested this is not enough and a greater commitment to increasing public awareness is key to halt the rising tide of Diabetes Type II.

"Effective preventive solutions exist, but these are not being rationally or widely used in the region. While special treatment centres do exist, most of these are beyond the reach of ordinary people, and there are still people in the wider region dying of the disease for want of insulin. Mortality caused by Diabetes Type II is underestimated across the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean," he said.

Health professionals qualified to deal with the disease are few in the region, with Dr Khatib suggesting there was a great and urgent need for not only diabetologists, but also diabetic educators, nutritionists and chiropodists.

"There is a great need for community based health care programmes. We need to start educating children as early as possible about healthy eating and the importance of physical activity. There needs to be social education programmes put in place right now in order to stop this disease," he added.

The doctor suggested a host of primary preventative measures, including the development of community-based healthy lifestyle programmes; promoting healthy weight levels and programmes to stop smoking. Early identification of possible Diabetes Type II by screening will reduce the cost burden.

He said 40-45% of the Middle East population are obese, and at current levels, 50% of those will get Diabetes Type II.

"If not addressed now, this will become the most expensive health problem ever faced by regional health care services," he concluded.

Dr Khatib presented his paper at a one day conference entitled "Obesity and Diabetes - a Regional Epidemic", which included papers from eminent speakers including Dr Sethu Reddy, Chairman of the Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Cleveland Clinic, USA, who also chaired the event; Dr Abdulrahman Musaiger, Head, Arab Centre for Nutrition and Chairman, Arab Task Force for Obesity, and Professor Dr. Med. Hans-Peter Hammes, Director of Endocrinology Department, University of Mannheim, Germany.

John Hassett, Exhibitions Director, IIR Healthcare Division, said: "The congress is a key tool for identifying and addressing healthcare problems such as these problems, as well as the future healthcare needs of the region.

"After such high levels of interest in this years' congress, we plan to further expand the congress next year."

Some 1,600 exhibitors from 50 countries are taking part in Arab Health, which fills eight halls at the Dubai International Exhibition Centre and runs until Wednesday night. It features 25 national pavilions with first time participation from Brazil, Singapore, Sweden and Turkey.

Meanwhile, the stage is set for the first health awards to honour outstanding contributions to the Middle East's health industry which are being staged in co-operation with Arab Health. The 'Middle East Arab Health' awards will be held on Tuesday evening (January 20th) at The Fairmont Hotel, Dubai.

The awards have been organised by Arab Health Magazine and Middle East Health Magazines the region's two most important healthcare sector magazines. They will recognise individuals, teams, organisations, partnerships and medical suppliers, for their work in helping improve healthcare services, from countries across the GCC, Yemen, Iran, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt.

Arab Health 2004 features four vertical events - IHS, a dedicated show for hospitals, clinics and insurance companies involved in the expanding world wide market for overseas and distance healthcare facilities; Pharmacy; Arab Dentistry and MedLab, for laboratory and biotechnology products.

New this year is HDI - Hospital Design and Interiors, which runs parallel to the exhibition. Scheduled to open tomorrow (January 20) at Arab Health are three two-day conferences entitled Forum for Dentistry; New Approaches in Healthcare Management; and Advanced Minimally Invasive Surgery - which will be chaired by Dr. Jeffrey Ponsky, Section Head, Surgical Endoscopy, Department of General Surgery and Vice-Chairman, Division of Education, Cleveland Clinic, USA - a part of the Worldcare Consortium.

Also due to take place tomorrow (January 20) as part of the Arab Health Congress, which includes 11 dedicated forums, is a one-day conference on 'Disease Management - Implementing A Detection and Monitoring Process to Assist in Preventing Chronic Diseases.' Among speakers will be Dr. Maryem Al Hassani, Curative Medicine Department, Ministry of Health, Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Arab Health is held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and Industry and President, Department of Health and Medical Services. The event's leading sponsor is Dubai Healthcare City, one of the world's leading healthcare projects.