Pre-diabetes is a significant risk factor for type 2 diabetes, with a 5-10% annual conversion rate to diabetes. The current prevalence of type 2 diabetes in Saudi Arabia is 32.8%, predicted to rise to 45.8% by 2030. This study aims to determine the prevalence of pre-diabetes and its associated risk factors among Saudis attending Primary Health Care Centers (PHCC) in Makkah city, Saudi Arabia.
Methodology
We conducted a cross-sectional study of Saudi males aged 18 years and above, visiting a PHCC in Makkah over two months. We directly interviewed respondents using Arabic translation version of the Canadian Diabetes Screening Tool to assess risk factors, such as the family history of diabetes, smoking, food habits, physical activity. Anthropometric measurements were taken along with laboratory assessment of Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1C).
Results
The total number of participants was 222, with a mean age of 39.9 years (Standard Deviation ±11.8). Sixty participants 27% were diagnosed as pre-diabetics, of whom 46.7% were 18-44 years old, 58.6% were obese or overweight; 18.9% had a waist circumstance (WC) over 102 cm, 50% had high blood pressure, 60% had a family history of diabetes, 23% were smokers, 72% did not consume vegetables and fruits daily, and 60.4% were physically inactive. We found a moderate positive correlation (r = 0.597) between HgA1C and diabetes risk score with an area under the curve of 0.751, with 80% sensitivity and 66% specificity at a cut off value of 24.5. After adjusting for other variables, statistically significant risk factors for pre-diabetes were being married, older age, family history of diabetes, and WC over 102 cm.
Conclusion
We found a high prevalence of pre-diabetes and associated risk factors. We recommend using this non-invasive, inexpensive and safe screening tool to identify Saudis at high risk of pre-diabetes.