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Insulin resistance and hypertension combine to increase diabetes

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Patients with significant insulin resistance and hypertension are almost 40 times more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes than those with normal blood pressure, study finds.


As we age, many of us will undergo routine checks to assess our blood pressure, and some will require intervention to treat hypertension. However, many people are unaware that hypertension is linked to the risk of developing diabetes. A study published in the Journal of Diabetes Research investigates the role of insulin resistance in this relationship, whereby our cells are less affected by insulin and thus require more to achieve the same effect. 

The study used the medical records of 1,251 patients with no history of diabetes who attended Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University in Shanghai, China. The authors stratified these patients into three groups: those with normal blood pressure, moderate blood pressure, or hypertension. 

The percentage of patients newly diagnosed with diabetes in the normal blood pressure group, moderate blood pressure group, and hypertension group was 4.9%, 10.6%, and 19.0% respectively. Those who were hypertensive had a significantly increased risk of being newly diagnosed with diabetes.  

Interestingly, insulin resistance further compounded this risk, with those who demonstrated significant insulin resistance and hypertension together being 38.32 times more likely to be diagnosed with diabetes than those in the control group. The study highlights these patients as being at particular risk, and the researchers suggest that such patients should be screened for diabetes and undergo focused intervention to prevent them developing the disease.    

This article has been selected as a 2022 Article of the Year by the Chief Editor of the Journal of Diabetes Research, Dr. Mark Yorek. “I believe this article will be of broad interest to both clinicians and the general public. Hypertension is a common health condition and understanding its relationship to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes is important." he said.

Read the full article here.

To celebrate Hindawi authors and their contribution to the advancement of science, we asked our Chief Editors to select an original research or review article published in 2022 that they consider to be impactful and representative of their journal's research community and its current or future directions. We would like to invite you to explore our 2022 Article of the Year collection.


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Article of the Year Award: Impactful research contributions of 2022, as selected by our Chief Editors. Discover the winning articles.