Prevalence of Obesity and its Relationship with the Presence of Type 2 Diabetes

Abstract

Aim: The aim of the present article was to identify the prevalence of obesity and to evaluate the relationship between body mass index, waist circumference and fasting plasma glucose in a sample of Romanian patients from general population. Material and Method: The study sample consisted in 2200 patients care aged 25 years or older who gave their participation consent. The study was carried out on patients in primary care in Gorj County. Results: According to BMI, 19.5% of study participants had obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²) and 28.2% were overweight (BMI = 25-29.99 kg/m²). Prevalence of both condition was lower in patients < 40 years of age (18% of patients had overweight and 8.1% had obesity) and increased with age. Prevalence of type 2 diabetes was 6% (132 persons), and 4% (88 persons) of the study group presented impaired fasting glucose or impaired glucose tolerance. When the prevalence was analyzed according to the BMI, obese patients had significantly higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes compared with overweight patients and normal weight patients (p < 0.001). The same tendency was observed for impaired fasting glucose and impaired glucose tolerance (p < 0.001). There was a positive correlation between BMI and fasting plasma glucose and between waist circumference and fasting plasma glucose. Conclusion: A high prevalence of overweight and obesity in the Romanian population from Gorj County was identified.