This survey was undertaken to determine the prevalence of diabetes mellitus and
impaired glucose tolerance in a group of urban adults in Ibadan, Nigeria. A total of 998
subjects randomly selected from five main ministries and departments in the Government
Secretariat participated in the survey. Each subject was asked to fast overnight and ingested
75 g of glucose dissolved in 250 mL of water after answering a questionnaire. Relevant
anthropometric measurements such as weight, height, waist and hip diameters, and blood
pressure also were taken. After 2 hours, of blood was drawn and plasma glucose concentration
measured. Diagnosis of diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance was based on 1985
World Health Organization (WHO) cut-off values.
Blood glucose results were available in 875 subjects. Seven subjects were found to be
diabetic for a prevalence of 0.8%, with the majority (5 subjects) being newly diagnosed.
Nineteen were found to have impaired glucose tolerance for a prevalence of 2.2%. There
were no sex differences between the two groups. All of the newly diagnosed diabetics were
asymptomatic. Multivariate analysis revealed that subjects with a family history of diabetes,
higher body mass index, and higher systolic blood pressure had higher blood glucose levels.
The prevalence of diabetes in this survey is lower than rates reported in recent surveys
in Nigeria that used less stringent criteria and different methodologies. The rate is comparable
to that of a Tanzanian study that used WHO criteria. However, the rate of impaired glucose
tolerance in this study, first to be reported in Nigeria, is lower than that obtained in the
Bantu population. (J Nad Med Assoc. 1998;90:293-301.)