Endogenous insulin secretion in newly diagnosed diabetic patients in Saudi Arabia.
Diabetes mellitus is a major health problem in Saudi Arabia. The evaluation of endogenous insulin secretion at diagnosis has not yet been studied in this population. We have therefore studied fasting and post-glucagon stimulation levels of glucose, insulin and C-peptide in 216 newly diagnosed untreated diabetic patients. The mean +/- SD fasting insulin and C-peptide levels were 14.0 +/- 1.8 microU/ml and 1.8 +/- 0.4 ng/ml, while post-glucagon stimulation levels were 21.1 +/- 3 microU/ml and 2.4 +/- 0.4 ng/ml. There were significant post-stimulatory increment levels for insulin, from 4.9 to 13.7 microU/ml, and C-peptide from 0.2 to 1.3 ng/ml (P less than 0.001). Such increments did not affect specified age distribution. We found a significant correlation between the fasting levels and post-stimulation levels of C-peptide and insulin. Obesity correlated with higher basal and post-stimulation levels of both hormones (r = 0.67, P less than 0.001). The mean +/- SD fasting insulin and C-peptide levels were 18.5 +/- 9.1 microU/ml and 2.4 +/- 0.8 ng/ml for obese patients and 11.5 +/- 5.1 microU/ml and 1.9 +/- 1.1 ng/ml for non-obese patients. The type of diabetes among the Saudi adult diabetic patients studied is characterized by high basal C-peptide and insulin levels which increase significantly with stimulation, suggesting diminished but present endogenous B-cell function.
Department of Biochemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
O S
OS
al-Attas
M A
MA
Laajam
M S
MS
Khan
A Z
AZ
al-Dress
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002096:C-Peptide / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism*; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis; D005215:Fasting; D005260:Female; D005934:Glucagon; D006801:Humans; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood / Q000378:metabolism*; D000078790:Insulin Secretion; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity; D012529:Saudi Arabia
D015415:Biomarkers; D001786:Blood Glucose; D002096:C-Peptide; D007328:Insulin; D005934:Glucagon