Frequency of newly diagnosed diabetes mellitus in acute ischaemic stroke patients.

Objective: To determine the frequency of newly diagnosed diabetes mellitus in acute ischaemic stroke patients.

Study Design: Observational study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi, from June 2007 - June 2008.

Methodology: This study included adult patients (age > 30 years, both genders) with the diagnosis of acute ischaemic stroke. Patients who were known to have diabetes mellitus prior to stroke, had a non-lacunar stroke or were admitted to intensive care units for any reason were excluded. Detailed history and examination, fasting blood sugar, fasting lipid profile, a non-enhanced CT scan brain and electrocardiogram were done on every patient. Data were entered on a preformed proforma. The results were analyzed on SPSS version 10. Chi-square test was applied. P-value <0.05 was considered to be statistically significant.

Results: A total of 250 patients were enrolled. The male: female ratio was 1: 0.9. Mean age was observed as 60.9±10.1 years. In total, 50 new cases of diabetes mellitus were identified (20%). Average fasting blood sugar in diabetic subjects was 148±10 mg/dl. The most common risk factors in the newly diagnosed diabetic subjects were hypertension 26 (52%), smoking 18 (36%) and hyperlipidemia 14 (28%). Atrial fibrillation and myocardial infarction were seen in 12 subjects (24%) and 9 subjects (18%) respectively.

Conclusion: Twenty percent patients with acute ischaemic stroke had un-diagnosed diabetes. Therefore, it is advisable to screen acute stroke patients for diabetes to reduce their long-term morbidity and mortality.