Abstract
The objective of the study was to determine the conversion rate of subjects with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) to Type 2 diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and to identify factors which predict such conversion.
Sixty eight subjects previously diagnosed with IGT in a survey conducted in 1995 in Sikhra, a Jordanian town of 10,000 people located in North Jordan, were reassessed for conversion to Type 2 diabetes two years later. A control group of 144 participants in the 1995 survey with normal glucose tolerance was also similarly reassessed for conversion to Type 2 diabetes. Diagnosis of IGT and NIDDM was based on WHO criteria^1^.
Of the 68 IGT cases, 10 (14.7%) progressed to Type 2 diabetes, 27 (29.7%) reverted to normal, and the remainder persisted with IGT. A positive family history was a significant predictor of progression to diabetes irrespective of the IGT status. During the two year followβup period a significantly larger increase in systolic blood pressure (SBP) was observed among those who progressed to Type 2 diabetes compared with those who did not. Age Β±40 and hypertension were consistent with a higher rate of progression to Type 2 diabetes but the association failed to attain statistical significance at the 0.05 level (p = 0.055 and 0.07 respectively).