The prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes: a population-based study

Diabetes remains one of the top public health care priorities. Over 6% of the world's population is affected by type 2 diabetes; however, a similar number of individuals may be unaware of this diagnosis.

Our population‑basedstudy aimed to investigate the true prevalence of diabetes and prediabetes in the general population of a medium‑sized city in Poland.

The analysis included 1051 participants of the Bialystok PLUS population‑based cohort study. In those who did not report a history of diabetes, the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed. Medical history data were gathered using standardized questionnaires, and anthropometric as well as body composition measurements were performed.

According to the medical history data, a total of 75 participants had diabetes (7.14%). Prediabetes (impaired fasting glycemia [IFG] or impaired glucose tolerance [IGT]) was identified in 410 individuals, including 241 participants with IFG (22.9%) and 169 patients with IGT (16.1%). Moreover, there were 71 individuals (6.75%) who were newly diagnosed with diabetes based on OGTT results. Overall, 146 patients with diabetes (13.8%) were identified. The ratio of lean mass to fat mass differed significantly between the patients with newly diagnosed diabetes and those without impaired glucose metabolism.

Our cohort study demonstrated a high prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes in the Białystok population. In addition, we showed that a large group of patients still remains undiagnosed for other hyperglycemic disorders. Abdominal obesity as well as imbalance between the fat and lean mass may predispose to diabetes.