Type 1 Diabetes: Infant Testing Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Department of Health and Social Care
Steve Witherden
Main Page: Steve Witherden (Labour - Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr)Department Debates - View all Steve Witherden's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
(1 day, 10 hours ago)
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Irene Campbell
I agree with what my hon. Friend says. As I say, I am looking forward to hearing the Minister’s response on how we can make progress.
As we have heard, DKA is a life-threatening complication of diabetes, which is caused by extreme insulin deficiency. We urgently need to change and reduce the rates of DKA. One issue is that it is difficult to know exactly how many children have been missed, discharged and reassured after presenting with these symptoms who will then return for later diagnosis.
As well as young children, adolescents have high rates of presenting with DKA, which can be compounded by factors such as deprivation and ethnicity. That must also be taken into consideration.
Steve Witherden (Montgomeryshire and Glyndŵr) (Lab)
Some 17,600 people in Wales are known to be living with type 1 diabetes. Like England, we do not yet have a national screening programme. In 2018, the Cardiff and Vale university health board introduced a series of quality improvement initiatives to support earlier diagnoses. As a result, it has recorded the lowest average incidence of DKA over the past six years compared with the rest of Wales. Does my hon. Friend agree that this approach should be adopted across all health boards in Wales and throughout the rest of the UK?
Irene Campbell
I thank my hon. Friend for raising that point. Yes, I agree. That sounds like a very good way to take this forward.
The petition and the surrounding conversation can serve as a call for change, not only for young children and infants but for all undiagnosed patients with type 1 diabetes who are at risk of their condition leading to dangerous complications. In the words of the petitioner,
“Lyla was bright, full of life, and had her whole future ahead of her. But in a matter of days, everything changed. She became unwell, and like so many parents, we trusted the system to protect her. That trust was misplaced. By the time her condition was recognised, it was too late.”
I look forward to other hon. Members’ contributions and to the Minister’s response.