Prevalence and Associated Factors of Diabetes Mellitus in a Very Elderly Chinese Population: A Cross-sectional Study

This paper aimed to investigate the prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) and explore the associated risk factors in a very elderly southwest Chinese population.

From September 2015 to June 2016, a cross-sectional survey was conducted to obtain a representative sample of 1,326 participants over 80 years old living in Chengdu. The presence of DM was based on fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and 2-h plasma glucose (2-hPG) levels during an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). A logistic regression model was used to calculate the odds ratios ( ORs) and 95% confidence intervals ( CIs) of the potential associated factors.

The participants' mean age was 83.5 ± 3.1 years. The overall prevalence of DM was 27.4%. The prevalence was higher in males (30.2%) than females (24.7%) ( P = 0.02). The prevalence of DM increased with body mass index (BMI) and decreased with aging. The multivariate analysis suggested that male sex ( OR = 1.433; 95% CI, 1.116-1.843), hypertension ( OR = 1.439; 95% CI, 1.079-1.936), overweight or obesity ( OR = 1.371; 95% CI, 1.023-1.834), high heart rate (≥ 75 beats/min; OR = 1.362; 95% CI, 1.063-1.746), and abdominal obesity ( OR = 1.615; 95% CI, 1.216-2.149) were all significantly positively correlated with DM. However, age was negatively correlated with DM ( OR = 0.952; 95% CI, 0.916-0.989).

The prevalence of DM and newly diagnosed DM in a very elderly southwest Chinese population was high. OGTT screening should be performed regularly in people aged ≥ 80 years to ensure timely diagnosis of DM.