The utility of a single glucometer measurement of fasting capillary blood glucose in the prevalence determination of diabetes mellitus in an urban adult Palestinian population.
This paper aims to evaluate the utility of a single glucometer fasting capillary blood glucose (FCBG) measurement in determining the prevalence of diabetes mellitus in a homogeneous adult population. FCBG measurements were compared with results of the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in 445 subjects aged 30-65 years in an urban cross-sectional study in Old Ramallah. Prevalence of diabetes, sensitivity, specificity and predictive values were calculated at different cut-off levels of FCBG, using OGTT as the reference. The prevalence of OGTT-diagnosed diabetes was 2.7%, while it varied considerably using different cut-off levels of FCBG. The sensitivity of a single glucometer (Exac Tech II) measurement of FCBG at the cut-off level of 6.7 mmol 1(-1) was 33.3%, with a specificity of 98.8%. Using the cut-off level of 6.1 mmol 1(-1) as suggested by the 1998 provisional report of a WHO consultation, the sensitivity increased to 41.7%. At a cut-off level of 5.6 mmol 1(-1), a sensitivity of 66.6% was reached, but the specificity decreased slightly. It can be concluded that a single glucometer measurement of FCBG in an adult population is not useful in determining the prevalence of diabetes mellitus.
Husseini
A
A
Institute of Community and Public Health, Birzeit University, West Bank, Palestine. abed66@hotmail.com
Abdul-Rahim
H
H
Awartani
F
F
Giacaman
R
R
Jervell
J
J
Bjertness
E
E
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis*; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006801:Humans; D007557:Israel / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011159:Population Surveillance; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015995:Prevalence; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
D001786:Blood Glucose