title: Screening obese students for acanthosis nigricans and other diabetes risk factors in the urban school-based health center.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence of acanthosis nigricans (AN) and other diabetes risk factors in urban school health clinics.
  
  
  METHODS
  During the period 2006-2009 nurse practitioners (NPs) screened students who had a BMI ≥ 95th percentile and 1 additional diabetes risk factor. Blood glucose (BG) was measured by finger stick. NPs were trained on how to ascertain the presence of AN on the neck area.
  
  
  RESULTS
  NPs screened 854 students (mean age 11.4 years, 60.5% female, and 73.3% black). AN and elevated BG were found among 26% and 6.4% of students, respectively. Females and minorities were respectively 50% and 4 times more likely to have AN. Youth with AN were twice as likely to have elevated glucose.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  AN can be easily identified by trained health care professionals even in busy school-based clinic settings. Checking for AN and appropriate education and counseling should become a routine part of electronic documentation in overweight youth.
authors: State University of New York, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA. rafalson@dyc.edu
authors: Lisa
authors: L
authors: Rafalson
authors: Jill
authors: J
authors: Eysaman
authors: Teresa
authors: T
authors: Quattrin
mesh_terms: D000052:Acanthosis Nigricans / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000293:Adolescent; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening; D009518:New York / Q000453:epidemiology; D009722:Nurse Practitioners; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012572:School Health Services; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data