Oxidative Stress and Glycaemic Control in Type 2 Diabetic Patients in Enugu, South-East Nigeria

BACKGROUND: There is growing evidence that excess generation of highly reactive free radicals, largely due to hyperglycaemia causes oxidative stress, which further exacerbates the development and progression of type 2 diabetes and its complications. OBJECTIVES: In this study, the level of oxidative stress was compared with glycaemic control in type 2 diabetic patients. METHOD: Fifty confirmed type 2 diabetic patients, aged between 25 and 70 years were used for the study. 20 patients with good glycaemic control served as positive control while 20 apparently healthy non-diabetic age-matched individuals served as negative control. The FBS, MDA and HbA(1) c were determined in fasting blood samples using standard methods. RESULTS: Patients with poor glycaemic control had significantly raised MDA and HbA(1)c (P =0.0001) when compared with non diabetics However, those with good glycaemic control only had a significant increase in the MDA when compared to non diabetic. (P =0.0001).).The MDA level when compared to fasting blood sugar (FBS) and glycated haemoglobin (HbA(1)c) showed a positive correlation.( r= 0.77; P = 0.0001 and r=0.69; P = 0.0001 respectively) CONCLUSION: This study showed that both glycaemic control and lipid peroxidation are factors to be monitored or evaluated in the management of type2 diabetics to avoid the development of diabetic complications.