Socioeconomic factors related to attendance at a Type 2 diabetes screening programme

The prevalence of diabetes is increasing, and screening of high-risk populations is recommended. A low attendance rate has been observed in many Type 2 diabetes screening programmes, so that an analysis of factors related to attendance is therefore relevant. This paper analyses the association between socioeconomic factors and attendance for Type 2 diabetes screening.

Persons aged 40-69 years (n = 4603) were invited to participate in a stepwise diabetes screening programme performed in general practitioners' offices in the county of Aarhus, Denmark in 2001. The study was population-based and cross-sectional with follow-up. The association between screening attendance in the high-risk population and socioeconomic factors was analysed by odds ratio.

Forty-four percent of the estimated high-risk population attended the screening programme. In those with known risk for Type 2 diabetes, attenders were more likely to be older, to be unemployed and to live in the countryside than non-attenders. The risk for Type 2 diabetes was unknown for 21% of the study population; this group was younger and less likely to be cohabitant, skilled, or employed and to have middle or high income than the study population with known risk score for diabetes.

A low attendance rate was found in this screening programme for Type 2 diabetes. No substantial socioeconomic difference was found between attenders and non-attenders in the high-risk population. Further research is needed to uncover barriers to screening of Type 2 diabetes in socioeconomically deprived persons.