The prevalence of Type 2 diabetes and related complications in a nationally representative sample of adults aged 50 and over in the Republic of Ireland.

AIM

To investigate the prevalence of diagnosed Type 2 diabetes and its related complications in a nationally representative sample of older adults in the Republic of Ireland.

METHODS

Cross-sectional analysis of a population-based sample of adults aged ≥ 50 years from the first wave of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA), (2009-2011). Diagnosed Type 2 diabetes prevalence was estimated by self-report or the use of oral hypoglycaemic agents. The prevalence of microvascular and macrovascular complications was determined by self-report.

RESULTS

Diagnosed Type 2 diabetes prevalence was 8.4% [95% confidence interval (CI): 7.8-9.0%] and was higher among men [10.3% (95% CI: 9.4-11.2%)] than women [6.6% (95% CI: 5.9-7.5%)]; P ≤ 0.001. Among participants with diagnosed Type 2 diabetes, the overall prevalence of microvascular complications was 26.0% (95% CI: 22.4-30.0%) with no evidence of gender-specific differences (P = 0.7). The overall prevalence of macrovascular complications was 15.1% (95% CI: 12.2-18.4%) and was higher among men [17.8% (95% CI: 14.3-23.1%)] than women [11.4% (95% CI: 7.7-16.4%)]; P ≤ 0.001.

CONCLUSIONS

In the absence of a national diabetes register, these findings provide a robust estimate of the national prevalence of diagnosed Type 2 diabetes and level of complications among adults aged 50 years and over in Ireland.