The Burden of Diabetes in Rural America

Diabetes prevalence is approximately 17 percent higher in rural areas than urban areas, with previous studies showing that rural adults were more likely to report a diagnosis of diabetes than urban adults. A primary aim of this project was to compare urban-versus-rural Type 2 diabetes prevalence, morbidity and mortality, and investigate the influence of selected demographics. Included was a comparison of border versus non-border states, with regard to type 2 diabetes and its complications. The study examined data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project state emergency department and inpatient survey databases (years 2007 – 2014), and CDC-Wonder Mortality Data.

Publications

• The Changing Landscape of Diabetes Mortality in the United States Across Region and Rurality, 1999-2016
  Journal Article
  Southwest Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 02/2019
  This brief report examines place-based differences in diabetes mortality to understand whether disparities in diabetes mortality have changed across U.S. Census regions and levels of rurality over time. Reductions in diabetes mortality are lagging in rural areas, and the rural South in particular, relative to other areas of the country.
• Diabetes-Related Hospital Mortality in the U.S.: A Pooled Cross-Sectional Study of the National Inpatient Sample
  Journal Article
  Southwest Rural Health Research Center
  Date: 02/2019
  This study examined place-based and individual-level variations in diabetes-related hospital deaths using the 2009-2015 National Inpatient Sample. Results show that place-based disparities exist. Targeted focus should be placed on the control of diabetic complications in the South, West, and Midwest census regions and among rural residents.