Correlation of diabetes mellitus and iron status at a tertiary care hospital

Background and Objectives: To evaluate the correlation between levels of serum ferritin, serum iron, haemoglobin and TIBC with the duration of diabetes mellitus and level of control (HbA1c). Methods: 100 patients with a clinical diagnosis of diabetes mellitus – using the American Diabetes Association diagnostic criteria – were included in the study (50 cases and 50 controls). Detailed history was taken including presenting complaints with duration of diabetes mellitus, history of hypertension, infections, anemia and chronic renal failure. General physical examination including vitals, body mass index (BMI) and systemic examination was done. Laboratory parameters like serum ferritin, serum iron, total iron binding capacity (TIBC), haemoglobin, fasting blood sugar (FBS), postprandial blood sugar (PPBS), glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), and renal function tests were done for all patients. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 24 Results: We found that diabetic individuals had, higher serum ferritin levels than non diabetics and this was statistically significant. There was no statistical difference between diabetic individuals and non diabetics in the TIBC levels. Both groups had normal iron and creatinine levels. We found that diabetic individuals had a positive correlation with elevated serum ferritin with a coefficient ratio of 0.34 and a p value of 0.02 with respect to the duration of diabetes mellitus. Conclusion: We conclude that serum ferritin levels are positively associated with the presence and duration of diabetes