Author(s): Nidal Abdelgadir Elbala Elmagboul
Aim: assessing the prevalence of diabetic peripheral neuropathy and its associated risk factors in diabetic patients attending primary health care centers in Khartoum locality, Sudan 2019.
Materials and Method: Descriptive cross-sectional facility-based study, 288 patients were assessed using a questionnaire consist of two-part: the first part is regarding the sociodemographic data and the second part is a standardized MNSI questionnaire.
Results: out of 288 patients 223 were females, the mean age was 53.2 (SD ± 9.9 years), the majority had type 2 DM (98.6%). The overall prevalence of DPN was 42%, males were 31.4% and females were 68.4%. The risk factors for peripheral neuropathy were the female gender, the age of the patient more than 58 years and the duration of diabetes more than 10 years, smoking, being married and divorced, being overweight, being a householder, using oral hypoglycaemic agents, and being on poor glycaemic control with a p-value of 0.002, 0.001, 0.001, 0.012, 0.001, 0.001, 0.001, 0.024 and 0.001 respectively. In the logistic regression model the bad glycaemic control and the marital status (being married) emerged as significant independent predictors for developing DPN.
No significant association was found with the educational level of the patients (p-value = 0.127) and type of diabetes mellitus (p-value = 0.178).
Conclusion: high prevalence of peripheral neuropathy in diabetic patients attending primary health care center. Higher age, longer duration of diabetes, using oral hypoglycaemic agents, and poor glycaemic control were important risk factors for it
