Diabetic patient discharges from Middlemore Hospital in 1983.

Diabetes mellitus is a significant health problem in south Auckland. A retrospective case note review of all diabetic admissions to Middlemore Hospital in 1983 was performed to establish a database to identify current problem areas and permit ongoing analysis. Three hundred and seventeen admissions from 225 patients using 6086 hospital days were reviewed: 204 diabetes-related admissions occupied 4040 days. One hundred and nine patients were male. One hundred and fifty-seven patients were European, 45 were Maori and 21 were Polynesian. European patients were older (mean age 64 years) and lighter (mean weight 69kg) than the non-European patients (mean age 56 years, mean weight 83kg). One hundred and eighty patients had noninsulin dependent diabetes mellitus: European patients were discharged on insulin treatment in 38% of admissions compared with 17% for nonEuropean patients. The patterns of admission were similar for all racial groups except for admissions for chronic renal failure where 21 of 22 admissions were by nonEuropean patients. A comparative cost analysis was performed: admissions for peripheral vascular disease contributed 34% to the calculated total cost of diabetes-related admissions despite only accounting for 17% of admissions. Further research, especially in the nutritional field, is necessary before realistic cost-benefit interventions can be devised and implemented.