Impact of the 1997 American Diabetes Association criteria on classification of glucose intolerance among Kuwaitis below 50 years of age

Type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes is emerging as a leading chronic non-communicable disease among the adult Kuwaiti population. Based on the World Health Organization and similar reports the projected estimates for subjects suffering from type 2 diabetes by the years 2000 and 2010 show a striking tendency to high rates of the disease in our area. We report the prevalence rates of glucose intolerance among a relatively young adult Kuwaiti population below 50 years of age and the effect of implementing the recent 1997 American Diabetes Association diagnostic criteria on the frequency of type 2 diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance and impaired fasting glucose among this group. The overall prevalence rate for the three categories of glucose intolerance reached as high as 15.8% (95% CI, 14.2 to 17.4). Age, though all subjects were below 50 years, parental history of type 2 diabetes, diastolic blood pressure and serum triglycerides were found to be significant associated risk factors for the development of type 2 diabetes. Obesity was an apparent significant factor associated with the three forms of glucose intolerance (p < 0.001). Obesity and physical inactivity were documented in both non-diabetic and more so in diabetic Kuwaiti adults, which should form the basis of any immediate intervention programme. An integrated approach to the prevention of the described critical risk factors associated with type 2 diabetes is highly recommended in Kuwait. Research, focused on genetics of type 2 diabetes in the highly susceptible Kuwaiti population, should be planned.