Objective: To report the age- and sex-specific prevalences of diabetes and impaired glucose regulation (IGR) according to the revised 1999 World Health Organization criteria for diabetes in Europe.
Research design and methods: A total of 13 studies from nine European countries with 7,680 men and 9,251 women aged 30-89 years were included in the data analysis.
Results: In most of the study populations, the age-specific prevalences of diabetes were <10% in subjects younger than 60 years and between 10 and 20% at 60-79 years of age. Mean 2-h plasma glucose (2hPG) concentration increased linearly with age, but fasting plasma glucose (FPG) concentration did not. The increase in the prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes and IGR in the elderly was mainly a result of the large increase in 2hPG rather than FPG. Diabetes and impaired fasting glycemia defined by isolated fasting hyperglycemia was more common in men than in women 30-69 years of age, whereas the prevalence of isolated postload hyperglycemia, particularly impaired glucose tolerance, was higher in women than in men, especially in the elderly (individuals >70 years of age). More than half of the diabetes was undiagnosed in subjects younger than 50 years of age.
Conclusions: Most European populations have a moderate to low prevalence of diabetes and IGR. Diabetes and IGR will be underestimated in Europe, particularly in women and in elderly men, if diagnoses are based on fasting glucose determination alone.