PREVALENCE OF DIABETES-MELLITUS IN NEW-CALEDONIA - ETHNIC AND URBAN-RURAL DIFFERENCES

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus was assessed in the multiracial po pulation of New Caledonia in the South Pacific with the use of a two-s tep procedure. The first step included 9,390 subjects aged 30-59 years who were visited at home for screening with glucose strips. All subje cts who had a fasting capillary blood glucose value greater than or eq ual to 110 mg/dl were invited to come to the health center for a more detailed examination, In non-fasting subjects, a capillary blood gluco se value of 140 mg/dl was chosen as the cut-off point for further exam ination, A 2-hour glucose tolerance test was performed according to Wo rld Health Organization (WHO) recommendations on 424 positive screenee s as well as in a sample of 517 negative screenees. In all, 219 previo usly known diabetic subjects were found; among subjects classified as positive at the first step, 277 were detected as new cases of diabetes . After correction to take into account false negative subjects, the a ge-adjusted prevalence rate of diabetes was estimated to be 8.9% overa ll; Polynesians (15.3%) were found to be more at risk than Melanesians or Europeans (8.4% in the two other groups), A higher prevalence of d iabetes was found in Melanesians who lived in the urban area compared with Melanesians who lived in villages, This finding confirms the dele terious effect of western life in this population subject to rapid mod ernization.