Hispanics have more difficulty controlling diabetes than non-Hispa...( WINSTON-SALEM N.C. Results of an an...),Health

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. Results of an analysis of multiple studies show diabetes control is more challenging for Hispanics than non-Hispanic whites, according to researchers at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues.

The results revealed that Hispanic patients with diabetes have approximately 0.5 percent higher levels on a test that measures blood sugar control, called the A1C test, than non-Hispanic white patients. The researchers noted the consistency of these findings across the studies.

An A1C test measures hemoglobin linked with glucose, or blood sugar, over a time period of two to three months. Higher A1C values indicate patients have difficulty controlling their blood sugar.

The results of the meta-analysis are reported in the February issue of Diabetes Care.

A meta-analysis combines the results of several studies that used similar methods and procedures. This allows the capability to generate larger numbers than from a single study and detect differences that didnt show up in individual studies.

These findings are interesting because they evaluate all available information from studies that include both Hispanic and non-Hispanic whites over a period of 13 years, said Julienne Kirk, PharmD, associate professor of family and community medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine, and lead author of the study.

Kirk says that knowing some minority groups may have higher A1C could impact early treatment and awareness.

The researchers reviewed 495 studies, and narrowed their analysis down to 11 studies that comprised results of A1C tests for Hispanics and non-Hispanic whites, who were at least 18 years of age, and were not considered to have prediabetes or gestational diabetes.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the incidence per 1,000 of diagnosed diabetes of those between 18 and 79 years was 10.2 percent for Hispanic or Lat
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