Community-Based Diabetes Screenings to Diagnose High-Risk Individuals in Rural West Virginia

West Virginians are unduly burdened by diabetes. The current project utilized a prospective, cross-sectional study design to assess diabetes risk using a partnership between the academic community, extension agents, and community organizations. Trained extension agents screened to identify high-risk individuals for pre-diabetes and diabetes using (1) the validated 7-item diabetes risk assessment survey developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and (2) glycosylated A1c tests. Demographic and lifestyle behavior were also collected. Five hundred forty individuals from 12 counties (>150 zip codes) were screened for diabetes risk. The majority of the participants were females (78%), Non-Hispanic Whites (88.3%), and had no prior diagnosis of diabetes (84%). Mean BMI was 31.1 and in the obese category.  Diabetes Risk Score: The majority of participants (61.8%) were are high risk for pre-diabetes, as per the CDC’s risk assessment, with risk scores 9 points or greater; mean A1c was 6.06. Individual assessment of each of the 7 risk questions showed that the majority of participants had a family history of diabetes (siblings or parents; 70%), weighed more than their normal weight for height (65%), lead a sedentary lifestyle (37%) and are older in age (> 45 years; 57%) that increases their risk for diabetes.  A1c correlated with high risk scores (r=0.173, P=.001). Diabetes risk correlated with known risk variables: obesity, age, family history, hypertension, and physical activity. Individuals with increased risk for diabetes were handed their risk score as well as encouraged to follow up with their health care providers.