Asian diabetes in Britain: a clinical profile

The clinical features of large unselected groups of Asian (401) and European (491) patients attending a diabetic clinic were compared. The prevalences of symptomatic ischaemic heart disease, hypertension, retinopathy, and lens opacities were similar in the two groups, despite the shorter known duration and the relative youth of the Asian patients. Pedal pulses were more often absent in Europeans, whereas in the age-group 20-64 years, ankle and knee reflexes were more often unobtainable in Asians. The degree of adiposity was similar in the two groups, but was less in Asian males than females. A first-degree diabetic relative was reported more commonly in Asians than in Europeans. These findings are important in relation to the exceptionally high prevalence of diabetes recently described in the Southall Asian community.