Prevalence, and associated risk factors, of self-reported diabetes mellitus in a sample of adult urban population in Greece: MEDICAL Exit Poll Research in Salamis (MEDICAL EXPRESS 2002)

BACKGROUND: The continuous monitoring and future prediction of the growing epidemic of diabetes mellitus worldwide presuppose consistent information about the extent of the problem. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of diagnosed diabetes and to identify associated risk factors in a sample of adult urban Greek population. METHODS: A cross-sectional population-based survey was conducted in municipality of Salamis, Greece, during an election day (2002). The study sample consisted of 2805 participants, aged 20–94 years. Data were collected using a standardized short questionnaire that was completed by a face-to-face interview. Multiple regression analyses were performed to evaluate the association of diabetes with potential risk factors. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of diagnosed diabetes was 8.7% (95% CI 7.7–9.8%). After age adjustment for the current adult population (2001 census) of Greece, the projection prevalence was calculated to 8.2%. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified as independent risk factors: increasing age (odds ratio, OR = 1.07, 95% CI 1.06–1.08), male sex (OR = 1.43, 95% CI 1.04–1.95), overweight and obesity (OR = 1.97, 95% CI 1.29–3.01 and OR = 3.76, 95% CI 2.41–5.86, respectively), family history of diabetes (OR = 6.91, 95% CI 5.11–9.34), hypertension (OR = 2.19, 95% CI 1.60–2.99) and, among women, lower educational level (OR = 2.62, 95% CI 1.22–5.63). The prevalence of overweight and obesity, based on self-reported BMI, were 44.2% and 18.4%, respectively. Moreover, the odds for diabetes in obese subjects with family history were 25-fold higher than those with normal weight and without family history of diabetes, while the odds in overweight subjects with family history of diabetes were 15-fold higher. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicated that the prevalence of diabetes is high in Greek population. It is suggested that the main modifiable contributing factor is obesity, whose effect is extremely increased upon positive heredity presence

Evaluation of PCR Testing of Ethanol-Fixed Nasal Swab Specimens as an Augmented Surveillance Strategy for Influenza Virus and Adenovirus Identification

Viral culture isolation has been widely accepted as the “gold standard” for laboratory confirmation of viral infection; however, it requires ultralow temperature specimen storage. Storage of specimens in ethanol at room temperature could expand our ability to conduct active surveillance and retrospective screenings of viruses with rapid and inexpensive real-time PCR tests, including isolates from remote regions where freezing specimens for culture is not feasible. Molecular methods allow for rapid identification of viral pathogens without the need to maintain viability. We hypothesized that ethanol, while inactivating viruses, can preserve DNA and RNA for PCR-based methods. To evaluate the use of ethanol-stored specimens for augmenting surveillance for detection of influenza viruses A and B and adenoviruses (AdV), paired nasal swab specimens were collected from 384 recruits with febrile respiratory illness at Fort Jackson, S.C., in a 2-year study. One swab was stored at ambient temperature in 100% ethanol for up to 6 months, and the other swab was stored at −70°C in viral medium. For viral detection, frozen specimens were cultured for a variety of respiratory viruses, and ethanol-fixed specimens were tested with TaqMan (TM) probe and LightCycler SYBR green (SG) melting curve assays with at least two different PCR targets for each virus. The sensitivities of the TM and SG assays on specimens stored in ethanol for 1 month were 75% and 58% for influenza A, 89% and 67% for influenza B, and 93 to 98% and 57% for AdV, respectively. Lower specificities of the real-time assays corresponded to the increased detection of PCR-positive but culture-negative specimens. Influenza virus RNA was detected as well or better after 6 months of storage in ethanol