Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2026

A Zebrafish Model of Diabetes Mellitus and Metabolic Memory
Published on: February 28, 2013
What can complexity do for diabetes management? Linking theory to practice
1Community and Child Health, University of Chester, Chester, UK. h.cooper@chester.ac.uk
Background:
Diabetes presents a multifaceted picture with its rapidly rising prevalence associated with changing demographics and increasing levels of obesity in the developed world. Deaths from diabetes are predicted to rise by 25% over the next 10 years. The enormity of this public health challenge has been recognized the world over, but little attention has been paid to the theoretical frameworks underpinning practical management.
Aim:
This paper aims to introduce complexity theory and discuss its practical application to diabetes, focusing on a single 'tool' to provide an example of how theory can be linked to practice.
Application:
Critics have questioned the all inclusive nature of complexity seeing it as an intangible concept that fails to offer anything new to health care. However, few have appraised its practical application to a chronic disease that is currently managed using an outdated, linear, reduce and resolve model which fails to address the multiple interacting systems inherent within this condition.
Discussion:
This article proposes that complexity theory provides an interprofessional perspective for describing and understanding the processes involved, and provides working 'tools' for patients, carers and practitioners that capture the reality of managing this chronic disease in modern life.
Related Concept Videos
Diabetes: Management and Pharmacotherapy
Insulin remains the cornerstone of treatment for most patients with type 1 and many...
Diabetes Mellitus: Overview and Type I Subtype
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. As a result, the body is unable to produce sufficient insulin, and individuals with...
Diabetes: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Complications
Diabetes Mellitus: Type 2 and Gestational
Type II Diabetes II: Pathophysiology
Methods of Documentation VI: Case Management Model
For example, a patient with a chronic illness...