Comorbidity in Adult Patients Hospitalized with Type 2 Diabetes in Northeast China: An Analysis of Hospital Discharge Data from 2002 to 2013

This study aims to evaluate the comorbidity burden and patterns among adult patients hospitalized with a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in Northeast China using hospital discharge data derived from the electronic medical record database between 2002 and 2013. 12.8% of 4,400,892 inpatients aged ≥18 had a diagnosis of T2DM. Sex differences in prevalence varied among those aged <50, 50–59, and ≥60. Twenty-seven diseases were determined as major comorbidities of T2DM. Essential hypertension was the most common comorbidity of T2DM (absolute cooccurrence risk, 58.4%), while T2DM was also the most popular comorbidity of essential hypertension. Peripheral and visceral atherosclerosis showed the strongest association (relative cooccurrence risk, RCoR 4.206). For five leading comorbidities among patients aged ≥40, male patients had a stronger association with disorders of lipid metabolism than female patients (RCoR 2.779 versus 2.099), and female patients had a stronger association with chronic renal failure than male patients (RCoR 2.461 versus 2.155). Leading comorbidities, except chronic renal failure, had declining associations with T2DM with increased age. Collectively, hospital discharge data can be used to estimate disease prevalence and identify comorbidities. The findings provided comprehensive information on comorbidity patterns, helping policy makers and programs in public health domains to estimate and evaluate the epidemic of chronic diseases.