Change in age of diagnosis of type 2 diabetes in last one decade

Background: The prevalence of diabetes is rapidly increasing throughout the country. People diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) at a younger age seems to have higher risk of developing diabetes-related complications as compared to those who are diagnosed at late age.Aims and Objective: To report the change in age at diagnosis of T2DM patients.Methods: Self-reported age at diagnosis of T2DM patients attending the OPD of Diabetes, Obesity and Thyroid Center, Gwalior was recorded. Patients with Type 1 Diabetes and gestational diabetes mellitus were excluded. Individuals with diabetes who were not able to report their age at diagnosis, were also excluded from the present study. A total of 1000 patients diagnosed between 2011 – 2018 (Group A) were compared with 998 patients who were diagnosed between 2006 –2010 (Group B).Results: The age at diagnosis of diabetes mellitus was much earlier in group A (34.96±12.879 years) as compared to group B (44.5 ± 10.172 years) (p<0.001). Fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) were found to be significantly higher in Group A as compared to Group B. No difference was found with respect to age and postprandial plasma glucose (PPG). The same trend was observed even on sub-group analysis by gender. Before 2010 age had a significant correlation with FPG and PPG but after 2010this correlation existed only for FPG and not for PPG. No correlation was found with HbA1c in either cohort. Also, the correlation was significantly positive for females but negative for males. After 2010, the correlation was negative between age at diagnosis and FPG.Conclusion: A decrease in age at diagnosis was observed among the patients who were diagnosed after 2010 as compared to patients who were diagnosed with T2DM before 2010