JOURNAL OF CLINICAL AND BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES

Abstract

Background: Due to the increasing trend of prediabetes and diabetes globally, the study investigated the prevalence of these dysglycaemic conditions in children and young adults of 5-20 years of age, assessed some risk factors of diabetes, as well as the awareness of diabetes among subjects in the Kassena Nankana District of Upper East region, Ghana. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional survey was conducted from January to May 2012 on three hundred and five healthy volunteers who were randomly selected from six clusters in the district. Demographic data was collected from the study population using a structured questionnaire, followed by anthropometric and fasting blood glucose measurements. Results: The sex distribution of the study participants were 48.2% males and 51.8% females, and the overall mean age was 12.04±4.15 (±SD). About 49.2% and 50.8% of the respondents were from the rural settlements and urban communities respectively. The mean BMI of the respondents was 18.13±3.6 kg/m2, whilst 9.8% were overweight and obese, with a BMI ≥85th percentile for age and gender. The mean fasting blood glucose level was 4.96±0.51 mmol/l, and 11.5% had impaired fasting blood glucose, while none of the participants had diabetes. A positive family history of diabetes and hypertension was reported in 7.5% and 23.9% of the participants, respectively. There is a positive association between prediabetes and obesity, family history of diabetes and hypertension. Conclusion: The early detection of preclinical state of diabetes will create an opportunity for delaying and preventing the onset of the disease and its associated complications.

Key-words: Prediabetes, impaired fasting glucose, diabetes mellitus, prevalence, urban, rural.