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We are delighted to announce that we have established an international partnership of clinicians and scientists committed to advancing prevention of diabetes in Indians as well as South Asians from other countries. Dr Sujeet Jha, (Director, Instituteof Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism - Max Healthcare) is the lead for India, building on his established international collaborative epidemiological efforts to understand the genetic and environmental factors influencing T2D in South Asians.
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“The research will address the limitations of current approaches towards diabetes management. The Government of India has devised a large-scale community-based screening program, with the noteworthy aim of further delineating the true burden of disease in the country, by identifying those who remain undiagnosed. However, an international team of researchers (PLOS Medicine) recently reviewed our screening program and found it to be neither cost-effective nor complying with established criteria used for implementing a screening program. The ‘i-Health T2D study’ will be an expansive study of South-Asians in diverse settings. Our team, under the guidance of Professor John Chambers, will be using much simpler tools than what has been used so far, with HbA1c and waist circumference. Additionally, we will be screening individuals with pre-diabetic symptoms and subsequently select 10,000 people across Delhi, U.P., Punjab, Haryana and Bihar, who will be participating in the study. This will be one of the largest T2D and lifestyle modification to be conducted in South Asia and our team at Max Healthcare is proud to have been selected to conduct this ground-breaking research” said Dr. Sujeet Jha, HoD, Endocrinology, Max Super Speciality Hospital, Saket.
Dr. Jha further added, “Whether we like it or not, diabetes is no longer just at the doorstep- it has entered our homes. 6.68 Crore Indians have already been diagnosed with diabetes and another 46.3% remain undiagnosed. In clinical practice, we see that a large subset of the population is not aware of diabetes and its complications. Even those with affected 1st degree relatives are often unsure as to whether they should be screened or not. Those with established diabetes are often unclear with regards to basic lifestyle modification, let alone further management of their disease. At Max Healthcare, we suggest that the focus of prevention should shift to developing better outreach programs and better educational models at both the rural and urban level.”
