RHEUMATIC PAINS OF PREVIOUSLY UNDIAGNOSED DIABETIC SUBJECTS

To identify the early diabetic musculoskeletal symptoms of previously undiagnosed diabetic subjects, a case-control study was carried out. T he cases and controls were recruited from a population aged 55 gears. Questions concerning the symptoms were asked before the 2-h oral gluco se tolerance tests (OGTT). The results show that pain in the right han d was the most prominent symptom among the diabetic women. Pains in th e left hand and the shoulders in the diabetic women and pains in the r ight knee and the right hip joint in the diabetic men tended to be mor e prevalent than the corresponding symptoms in the controls. The highe st prevalence of most musculoskeletal pains occurred in the highest te rtile of 2-h OGTT values among women. The conclusion is that the hand pain is closely associated with the development of diabetes and may gi ve clues to an early diagnosis of diabetes in a middle-aged population .