Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of 4556 Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients at a Tertiary Care Hospital in Southern Punjab

Objective The objective of this study was to analyze the demographic profile of type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) patients presenting to a tertiary care hospital of Southern Punjab, Pakistan. Methods This descriptive study was carried out at the Diabetic Outdoor Nishtar Hospital Multan from 2013 to 2018 after taking approval from the Institutional Ethical Review Committee. All patients were evaluated in detail after obtaining informed consent. Results Data of 4,556 patients with type 2 DM were analyzed. There were 2549 (55.9%) female and 2007 (44.1%) male participants in our study. The mean age of our study population was 47.72 years with a standard deviation (SD) of 10.82 years. Seventy-nine percent of the patients belonged to urban areas. Symptoms of polyuria, polydipsia, and polyphagia were found in 72%, 67%, and 59% of patients, respectively. Hypertension was found in 3391 (74%) patients. The mean waist circumference (WC) was 102.85 cm with an SD of 18.14 cm. The mean waist to hip ratio (WHR) was 1.02 with an SD of 0.102. The mean body mass index (BMI) was 26.50 with an SD of 5.57 kg/m(2). Obesity (BMI >27 kg/m(2)) was found in 1,891 (41.5%) of patients. Central obesity was found in 80.7% and 94.7% of type 2 DM patients according to the WC and WHR cutoff, respectively. Females were more likely to be obese than males in all parameters of obesity. Central obesity was much more common in female diabetics as compared to male diabetics (odds ratio 4 in WHR criteria versus odds ratio 1.8 in BMI criteria for obese). Conclusion Diabetes is more prevalent in females than males and especially affects the middle age group. Hypertension and obesity are important comorbid associations of DM. WC and WHR are more reliable indicators of obesity in type 2 DM patients especially in this part of the world. Central obesity was more prevalent in female type 2 DM patients.