BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)-associated mortality and morbidity are strongly dependent on glycemic control. With T2DM prevalence increasing in China, we aimed to assess glycemic control rates in Chinese T2DM outpatients.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 9065 adult T2DM outpatients (5035 men) were assessed in 26 Chinese medical centers between August 2010 and April 2012. Patients were stratified according to BMI (kg/m2): <24, 24–28, and >28. Successful glycemic control was defined as glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) ≤7% or fasting plasma glucose (FPG) <7.0 mmol/L.

RESULTS: Among the participants included in this study, 2939 had BMI <24, 3361 had BMI of 24–28, and 2764 had BMI >28. The glycemic control rate was only 32.6%, and the triple control rate for glycemia, blood pressure, and lipidemia was only 11.2%. Glycemic control rates by BMI group were 33.7% (<24), 33.8% (24–28), and 30.2% (>28) (p=0.005), and corresponding incidences of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) were 12.2%, 15.7%, and 15.9% (p<0.001). Multivariate logistic regression analysis demonstrated that older age (p<0.001), higher BMI (p=0.026), larger waist circumference (p<0.001), less education (p<0.001), and recent diagnosis (p<0.001) were independent risk factors for poor glycemic control.

CONCLUSIONS: The T2DM glycemic control rate in China is currently low, especially in older obese patients with poor education and recent diagnosis.

Keywords: Anthropometry, Blood Glucose - analysis, Body Mass Index, Cardiovascular Diseases - epidemiology, China - epidemiology, Comorbidity, Diabetes Complications - epidemiology, Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - epidemiology, Drug Monitoring, Educational Status, Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated - analysis, Lipids - blood, Outpatients - statistics & numerical data, Smoking - epidemiology