Diabetes Risk Test

                    Diabetes Risk Test

FINDRISK, German diabetes risk test and diabetes-PHD

It is important to discover people who have an increased risk of disease, - to prevent the outbreak of the disease with them by change of life style as early as possible.

Diabetes risk test is a low-cost and simple way. Since 2007, two different questionnaires available, which can identify those at risk without laboratory values are available in Germany: the FINDRISC (the Finnish diabetes risk score), and the German diabetes risk test (GDRS, German diabetes risk score). The diabetes PHD is from the Anglo-Saxon language.

FINDRISK

FINDRISK questionnaire: easy and fast

The FINDRISK questionnaire simplicity, is done in minutes. It is part of a three-step-concept for a national prevention programme (www.nafdm.de). Currently such a program is implemented in Saxony with the support of AOK, DAK and Innungskrankenkassen.

Building

Eight simple questions are aimed at the most important risks for the development of type 2 diabetes:

1.Age: four age groups, risk increases steadily with age

2.Body mass index (BMI). Three groups, risk increases in obesity (obesity, BMI > 30).

3.Waist size: three risk groups each for women and men, risk increases significantly with waist circumference > 88 cm (women) or > 102 cm (men).

4.Physical activity: under or over 30 minutes regular physical exercise every day?

5.Nutrition: Sufficient consumption of vegetables, fruit, whole grain bread?

6.High Blood Pressure: Taking blutdrucksenkender drugs?

7.Blood Glucose Levels: Were they ever raised in a medical examination?

8.Diabetes in the family: risk increased especially if close relatives are / were!

Statement

Answering the eight questions results in a score that indicates whether the person

• likely still unrecognized diabetics is (more than 20 points),

• has an increased risk to develop (11-20 points) over the next decade to diabetes type 2

• is regarded as a risk person (less than 11 points).

Benefits

• easy to answer questions

• no necessary laboratory values

• immediately a result (total score), which is understandable to the non-medical specialists

• Capture modifiable factors (such as physical activity and diet rich in fibre) as also not varying risks (the heredity plays in diabetes type 2 of a major role)

• Dissemination of simple, low cost

• low threshold-, simple and cost-effective tool

• well suitable to create awareness of the risk

Disadvantages

• Indication of the risk only in categories, not exactly like the German diabetes risk score

• more likely suitable, to discover a high level as a low risk.Cost: low, a few minutes

Dissemination

FINDRISK is as a paper questionnaire designed (e.g. pharmacies, waiting room) in Germany and in print media, on health and on the Internet. The FINDRISK questionnaire is part of a three-step-concept for a national prevention programme (www.nafdm.de).

Data base

FINDRISC (the FINnish diabetes RIsk score) diabetes prevention study was developed in one of the few large. The Finnish prevention study (Tuomilehto J et al, NEJM 2001; 344: 1343-1350) had in adults with impaired glucose tolerance proves that a life style change (nutrition, movement) can reduce the risk of diabetes by 58% to 3.2 years.

Prospective and retrospective studies on random sampling of over 6% of the Finnish population between 35 and 64 years are based on the questionnaire. They were ten or five years observed. Drug-treated diabetes was recorded on a register of the national health insurance, test criterion.

The FINDRISC questionnaire originally comprised the seven variables age, BMI, waist circumference, taking an antihypertensive medication history high blood sugar, physical activity and nutrition. For the practice, he was the variable "family history diabetes" added an eighth question. After several years in Finland was FINDRISK by the project group of prevention (Prof. Dr. Hans Hauner, Munich, Dr. Peter black.) (Dresden) of the national of Action Forum diabetes mellitus (NAFDM) validated for German circumstances.

Diabetes PHD

A detailed and yet vivid risk calculator for diabetes and other health risks

The site of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) gives "Diabetes PHD" a detailed, yet clear risk calculator for diabetes and other health risks (www.diabetes.org\/diabetesphd\/default.jsp, on "get your diabetes PHD" click).

Diabetes PHD (personal health decisions) was developed by a working group of the American Diabetes Association. The risk is calculated according to a complex mathematical model (www.archimedesmodel.com). It uses a network of numerous computers on every request and imitates as a supercomputer.

Building

Diabetes personal health decisions is completed online. First, he asks from basic information and family history in detail:

• Sex

• Age

• Size

• Weight

• Race

• Diagnosed with diabetes?

The following are details of the health status including laboratory values (which can also be omitted):

• Blood pressure

• Blood lipids

• Fasting blood glucose\/HbA1c value

• Eye disease (retinopathy?)

• Kidney disease

• Foot problems (ulcers?)

Finally life style factors

• Smoking

• physical activity

and consumed medicines (against high blood pressure, high blood lipids and diabetes).

Statement

Graphics illustrate the risk for

• Diabetes

• Heart attack

• Stroke

• Renal failure

• Eye and foot problems

The risk is represented as a column, or curve as a function of the age.

The next step the risk for the more distant life can be for each of these diseases show up. The dangerous curve continues to greater or lesser extent.

Now enter the "interventions": lose weight, reduce well-controlled, aspirin take stop, how does any single measure or or bundle, on individual (e.g., diabetes, stroke) or all risks? The calculator plays through the possibilities and shows the benefit of each measure. It is particularly sustainable, for example, to see how the action "Stop" most drastically reduced the area of the risk curve.

Advantage

Determined is not only the risk of developing diabetes, but also the risk for other diseases of the vascular system, such as heart attack or stroke. The calculator provides forecasts of the (increasing) risk for these disorders in the distant lifetime. He illustrates opportunities and risks by calculating the impact of interventions (e.g. stopping smoking) on life expectancy.

Disadvantage

• No diabetes screening test for it too costly

• optimal for inclusion of laboratory values

• faster Internet connection required

• consider not eating habits

Effort

Data collection takes barely 10 minutes (unless you can specify its height at the first attempt in foot and inch). The data is posted online and elaborately processed. At a high speed Internet access, the results come back after a few minutes, when a slow connection, it should be to send the result by E-Mail.