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The prevalence of type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes mellitus in an inner city multi-ethnic population

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Abstract

'Zeeburg', a multiethnic town borough in the Amsterdam-East region, has one of the city's highest rates of immigrants. In the total population of 19,825 Surinam (mainly Creole), Turkish, Moroccan, and Dutch adults the prevalence of known type 2 diabetes in 1994 and of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) between January 1992 and January 1997 was investigated. Based on World Health Organization (WHO) criteria of 1985, the age-standardized prevalence of type 2 diabetes was similar in men (6.4%; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 5.6–7.2) and women (6.4%; 95% CI: 5.8–7.0) for all ethnic groups combined. However, the age- and sex-standardized prevalence of type 2 diabetes was significantly greater in the non-Dutch inhabitants than in the Dutch inhabitants (17.3% [95% CI: 12.9–21.6] in Surinam inhabitants, 10.9% [95% CI: 9.7–12.2] in Turkish inhabitants, 12.4% [95% CI: 9.7–15.0] in Moroccan inhabitants, and 3.6% [95% CI: 3.2–3.9] in Dutch inhabitants. The odds ratios for type 2 diabetes for the separate immigrant groups relative to the Dutch group were 5.88 (95% CI: 4.54–7.69) for Surinam inhabitants, 4.00 (95% CI: 2.86–5.55) for Turkish inhabitants, and 4.17 (95% CI: 3.03–5.55) for Moroccan inhabitants. GDM was present in 2.59% of women of non-Dutch origin compared with 0.62% of women of Dutch origin. A significant positive association was found between the non-Dutch origin and the occurrence of GDM (χ2=6.7; p < 0.01). The study highlights a high prevalence of known type 2 diabetes and GDM in the immigrant inhabitants and emphasizes that appropriate interventions are necessarily with implications for health targets and capitation based budgets.

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Weijers, R., Bekedam, D. & Oosting, H. The prevalence of type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes mellitus in an inner city multi-ethnic population. Eur J Epidemiol 14, 693–699 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007597623897

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