Risk Factors for Thyroid Dysfunction among Type 2 Diabetic Patients in a Highly Diabetes Mellitus Prevalent Society.

Diabetes and thyroid dysfunction found to exist simultaneously. In this regard, the present study looked into the prevalence of different forms of thyroid dysfunction and their risk factors among Type 2 diabetic Saudi patients. Methodology. A cross-sectional retrospective randomized hospital-based study of 411 Type 2 diabetic Saudi patients of >25 years of age was conducted to test the prevalence of different types of thyroid dysfunction and their risk factors. Results. The prevalence of different types of thyroid dysfunction is 28.5%, of which 25.3% had hypothyroidism, where 15.3%, 9.5%, and 0.5% are clinical, subclinical, and overt hypothyroidism, respectively. The prevalence of hyperthyroidism is 3.2%, of which subclinical cases accounted for 2.7% and overt hyperthyroidism accounted for 0.5%. Risk factors for thyroid dysfunction among Saudi Type 2 diabetic patients are family history of thyroid disease, female gender, and duration of diabetes of >10 years, while the risk was not significant in patients with history of goiter and patients aged >60 years. Smoking and parity show a nonsignificant reduced risk. Conclusion. Thyroid dysfunction is highly prevalent among Saudi Type 2 diabetic patients, and the most significant risk factors are family history of thyroid disease, female gender, and >10 years duration of diabetes.

Comparison of different screening tests for diagnosis of diabetic peripheral neuropathy in Primary Health Care setting.

BACKGROUND: DPN is an important complication and contributes to the morbidity of diabetes mellitus. Evidence indicates early detection of DPN results in fewer foot ulcers and amputations. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to compare different screening tests in the detection of DPN in primary care setting. METHODOLOGY: It is a cross-sectional study in a random sample (N = 242) of type 2 diabetes mellitus participants at primary care setting. Different screening tests for detecting DPN such as Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument (MNSI), Semmes-Weinstein Monofilament (SWM), vibration sensation and ankle reflex were performed for each patient and compare between them. RESULTS: 45% of the participant had DPN based on MNSI, The detection rate using the 128-Hz tuning fork and 10-g SWM was nearly same (32.6 & 31.4%) respectively and significantly higher than ankle reflexes (23.1%). Although, the prevalence of DPN determined by the combined two tests (38.79%) was higher than that through the single test. CONCLUSION: this study showed different results of DPN screening tests, even in the same group of patients. However there was a significant correlation between them. 128-Hz tuning fork and 10-g SWM monofilament would appear to be an appropriate, cheap and easy to use tool for identifying patients at risk of having neuropathy in primary care setting.