Prevalence of Obesity in Newly Onset Diabetes Mellitus and Its Relationship with Uric Acid: An Indian Cross-Sectional Study

INTRODUCTION: Prevalence of obesity is high in diabetes mellitus (DM) and is associated with hyperuricemia (HU), hypertension, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease and dyslipidemia. In obesity, elevated serum uric acid (SUA) has been shown to be associated in many studies from different countries, but data from India are lacking. The aim of the present study is to know the prevalence of obesity and to know the relationship between obesity and SUA in newly onset DM. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study from India, 402 consecutive newly onset diabetic patients (male: 284; female: 118) were enrolled. All patients were grouped into four based on BMI (body mass index): underweight (<18.5 kg/m(2)), normal weight (18.5–23 kg/m(2)), overweight (>23-27.5 kg/m(2)), and obese (>27.5 kg/m(2)). All participants were grouped into four quartiles based on SUA (Q1: <4.23; Q2: ≥4.24–5.19; Q3: ≥5.20–6.16; Q4: >6.16). RESULTS: The mean age, BMI and SUA of the participants were 46.20±0.52 years, 26.35±0.21 kg/m(2) and 5.24±0.007 mg/dl, respectively. Overall prevalence of generalized obesity, central obesity and hyperuricemia (HU) were 35.07%, 85.82% and 13.43%, respectively. The prevalence of generalized obesity increased across the SUA quartile. A multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that serum uric acid level was independently associated with generalized obesity (p<0.001). CONCLUSION: This first report from India shows a significant positive association between SUA and generalized obesity among newly onset DM. Therefore, routine estimation of SUA is recommended in newly onset DM to prevent and treat HU and its related complications.