Author Interviews, Diabetes, Geriatrics / 19.04.2018
Screening Criteria Can Miss Over Half of Adults with Prediabetes
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Matthew James O'Brien MD
Assistant Professor, Medicine
General Medicine Division
Assistant Professor, Preventive Medicine
Northwestern University
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: The USPSTF is an expert group that makes recommendations for screening and other preventive services. In December 2015, they recommend that providers screen for diabetes in patients who are 40-70 years old and also overweight/obese. The same recommendation stated that clinicians “should consider screening earlier” in patients who have any of the following risk factors: non-white race/ethnicity, family history of diabetes, or personal history of gestational diabetes or polycystic ovarian syndrome. Using nationally representative data, we studied the performance of the “limited” criteria based on age and weight alone vs. the “expanded criteria” mentioned above.
The main findings were that following the “limited” screening criteria of age and weight would result in missing over 50% of adults with prediabetes and diabetes. In other words, if providers followed the “limited” criteria, over 50% of adults with prediabetes and diabetes would not get screened. The “expanded” criteria exhibited much better performance, resulting in 76.8% of adults with prediabetes and diabetes who would be screened. (more…)
