Comparison of three diabetes risk screening tools among Non-Hispanic Asian Indian Americans: Ada Drt, MDRF IDRS and HbA1c

The purpose of this study was to compare the relationship between two non-invasive screening tools, the American Diabetes Association Diabetes Risk Test (ADA DRT) and the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation Indian Diabetes Risk Score (MDRF IDRS), with glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) to determine which tool best predicted HbA1c in Asian Indian Americans. Among Asian Americans, Asian Indian Americans have the highest prevalence of Type 2 diabetes (12.6%). Furthermore, they have a unique genetic predisposition as well as cultural and religious lifestyle practices that may contribute to increased risk. Type 2 diabetes screening tools do not address the unique risk characteristics of Asian Indian Americans. We used clinical and survey data from our previous longitudinal study with a convenience sample of adult Asian Indian Americans (n = 70) selected from a community setting. Following the consenting procedure, all participants completed the ADA DRT and MDRF IDRS questionnaires to identify their diabetes risk. After the initial screening, individuals with an MDRF IDRS score of 50 or above (n = 70) were tested for HbA1c within a month. For this, trained volunteers collected capillary blood using standardized protocol. Descriptive statistics were calculated along with Spearman correlations, Chi-Square test of independence, and linear regressions at an alpha level set at p = .05. A significant, positive relationship (rs = .30, p = .01) was found between the MDRF IDRS score and HbA1c. A positive but weak relationship was also found between ADA DRT and HbA1c (rs = .23). The MDRF IDRS was a better predictor of diabetes risk in Asian Indian Americans than ADA DRT. The MDRF IDRS is a validated, simple, low-cost tool for the detection of diabetes risk in high-risk Asian Indian Americans. Hence, it is a good tool to use for community screenings and patient education for the prevention and management of the risk of Type 2 diabetes.