In Australia, 7.5% of the adult population has diabetes, and for every one person diagnosed with diabetes there is another undiagnosed.1 The prevalence of the most common form of diabetes, type 2, is increasing worldwide because of changing lifestyle, especially increasing weight caused by nutritional excess and decreasing physical activity. Many people with type 2 diabetes have cardiovascular and renal complications on diagnosis, and early detection of diabetes is an important strategy for reducing morbidity and premature mortality.2
The full article is accessible to AMA members and paid subscribers. Login to read more or purchase a subscription now.
Please note: institutional and Research4Life access to the MJA is now provided through Wiley Online Library.
- Department of Endocrinology and Diabetes, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, NSW.
- 1. Dunstan D, Zimmet P, Welborn T, et al on behalf of the AusDiab Steering Committee. Diabesity and associated disorders in Australia 2000. The accelerating epidemic. Australian diabetes, obesity and lifestyle report. Melbourne: International Diabetes Institute, 2000.
- 2. Engelgau MM, Narayan KMV, Herman WH. Screening for type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Care 2000; 23: 1563-1580.
- 3. American Diabetes Association. Report of the expert committee on the diagnosis and classification of diabetes mellitus. Diabetes Care 1997; 20: 1183-1197.
- 4. World Health Organization. Definition, diagnosis and classification of diabetes mellitus and its complications. Report of a WHO Consultation. Part 1: diagnosis and classification of diabetes mellitus. Geneva: World Health Organization Department of Noncommunicable Disease Surveillance, 1999: 1-59.
- 5. Hilton DJ, O'Rourke PK, Welborn TA, Reid CM. Diabetes detection in the Australian general practice setting: a comparison of different diagnostic criteria. Med J Aust 2001; 176: 104-107. <eMJA full text>
- 6. Australian Centre for Diabetes Strategies. National evidence based guidelines for the management of type 2 diabetes. Part 3. Evidence based guideline for case detection and diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Available at <www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/docs/Part3-Detection-and-Diagnosis.PDF> Last sighted Dec 18 2001.
- 7. Colman PG, Thomas DW, Zimmet PZ, et al. New classification and criteria for diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. Position statement from the Australasian Diabetes Society. Med J Aust 1999; 170: 375-378. <eMJA full text>
- 8. Shaw JE, Hodge AM, de Courten M, et al. Isolated post-challenge hyperglycaemia confirmed as a risk factor for mortality. Diabetologia 1999; 42: 1050-1054.
- 9. DECODE Study Group on behalf of the European Diabetes Epidemiology Group. Glucose tolerance and cardiovascular mortality: comparison of fasting and 2-hour diagnostic criteria. Arch Intern Med 2001; 161: 397-405.