The Pan American Journal of Public Health, PAHO's scientific and technical journal, has a special issue on prevention and control of type 2 diabetes in the United States-Mexico border. Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that affects more than 220 million individuals worldwide.

The special issue provides a wealth of information on diabetes prevention and control, based on the just-released results of a binational research project conducted among the U.S.-Mexico border population. The study was coordinated by the PAHO/WHO U.S.-Mexico Border Office in El Paso, Texas, in a special partnership between Mexico’s ministry of health (Secretaría de Salud) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, among other institutions.

Type 2 diabetes currently affects more than 220 million people globally. In Mexico, this disease is the leading cause of mortality, whereas in the United States, it ranks number three. Along the border between the two countries, diabetes-related morbidity and mortality rates were disproportionately high, with public health authorities on both sides calling for immediate action.

The findings of the U.S.-Mexico Border Diabetes Prevention and Control Project validated the worst fears of local and national decision-makers and confirm the urgent need for well-coordinated cross-border efforts to translate the valuable knowledge gained into effective strategies, policies, and plans to turn back the tide on this no-longer-so-silent killer.