News Flash: The FDA Just Approved a Breakthrough Diabetes Device

Diabetes is often referred to in the medical community as the "silent killer." Affecting more than 30 million people in the U.S. (9.4% of the population), diabetes was listed the cause of death for nearly 80,000 people in 2016, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its comorbidities, such as hypertension, heart disease, and kidney disease, can also cause lifelong problems and themselves lead to death. Though it may not inspire the same fear in patients as a cancer diagnosis, it's a very serious disease.

Diabetes is also a costly disease to treat. The CDC's National Diabetes Statistics Report released earlier this year estimated the direct and indirect estimated costs of diagnosed diabetes at $245 billion as of 2012. Mind you, nearly 24% of the 30.3 million people with diabetes in the U.S. are undiagnosed, meaning this $245 billion estimate is probably conservative and underrepresenting the actual costs of treating diabetic patients. It probably also fails to fully account for the lost worker productivity as a result of diabetics missing work or passing away earlier than people who don't have diabetes.

These statistics demonstrate why research into new medicines and devices designed to improve the quality of life of diabetics is so important.

Source: Fool.com