High Serum Uric Acid as a Novel Risk Factor for Type 2 Diabetes

OBJECTIVE - To investigate the association between serum uric acid level and risk of type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS - The population for analysis consisted of 4,536 subjects free from diabetes at baseline. During a mean of 10.1 years of follow-up, 462 subjects developed diabetes. RESULTS - The age- and sex-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) (95% Cls) for diabetes were 1.30 (0.96-1.76) for the second, 1.63 (1.21-2.19) for the third, and 2.83 (2.13-3.76) for the fourth quartile of serum uric acid, in comparison with the first quartile. After adjustment for BMI, waist circumference, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and HDL cholesterol, the HRs decreased to 1.08 (0.78-1.49), 1.12 (0.81-1.53), and 1.68 (1.22-2.30), respectively. CONCLUSIONS - The results of this population-based study suggest that Serum uric acid is a Strong and independent risk factor for diabetes.