Dutch diabetes prevalence estimates (DUDE-1).

Area of Science:

• Epidemiology
• Public Health
• Diabetes Research

Background:

• Global diabetes mellitus (DM) prevalence is rising.
• Estimates from small samples may underestimate actual DM rates.
• Previous Dutch DM prevalence estimates require validation with larger datasets.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate the 2013 Dutch diabetes prevalence estimate of 930,000.
• To assess if the estimate holds true using actual prevalence data from a larger population.
• To compare current findings with previous diabetes mellitus estimates.

Main Methods:

• Collected data from 92 primary care groups on diabetes mellitus (DM) patients in 2013.
• Identified DM patients using International Classification of Primary Care codes (T90.02, T90.01, T90).
• Estimated prevalence using linear extrapolation and compared with 2009 estimates.

Main Results:

• Data from 67 care groups (73%) covered 7,922,403 individuals.
• 431,396 patients were coded with diabetes mellitus (DM), 406,183 with type 2 DM (T2DM).
• Extrapolated Dutch DM prevalence was 914,387 (5.45%), closely matching prior estimates.

Conclusions:

• The 2013 estimate showed a <2% overestimation compared to this study's findings.
• No upward adjustment is needed for current Dutch diabetes mellitus prevalence estimates.
• Large-scale monitoring is crucial for accurate prevalence estimation and improved future predictions.