Population-based study of diabetic mellitus prevalence and its associated factors in adult Ghanaians in the greater Accra region

The increasing prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus (DM) has become an issue of global concern. Diabetes affects over 100 million people the world over. It has been observed in Ghana that diet-related diseases such as DM and hypertension are on the increase. However, statistical data on the prevalence of the disease in Ghana is scanty. This study therefore investigated the prevalence and the risk-factors of DM in adults in the Greater Accra Region. The study was a cross-sectional one involving people living in purposely selected urban and peri-urban communities in the Greater Accra Region. A total of 288 men and 309 women aged between 36 and 95 years participated in the study. Subjects were screened for DM using urinary and fasting blood glucose determinations. Data on background of subject were collected and anthropometric measurements were taken. Data entry and analysis were done using Microsoft Excel, and SPSS. Statistical significance was tested at 5%. Chi-square test was used to determine the strength of association between DM prevalence and other variables. Prevalence of diabetes among subjects as determined by fasting blood glucose was 3.9%. Physical activity, family history and hypertension among subjects were significantly associated with diabetes prevalence. Positive associations were also observed between diabetes prevalence and age, BMI, and WHR. Other factors were not significantly associated with diabetes prevalence. Diabetes prevalence among subjects was high. This warrants efforts to address risk factors identified in this study.