Revalence and factors associated with hyperuricaemia among diabetes mellitus patients at Kiruddu National Referral Hospital, Uganda

Abstract

Background: The prevalence of hyperuricemia is increasing around the world, especially among patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). Hyperuricemia leads to worsening hyperglycemia, and this accelerates the progression of diabetes target organ damage. In Sub-Saharan Africa, Uganda inclusive, diabetes mellitus is rising to epidemic levels and very few studies have been done to determine the relationship between hyperuricemia and diabetes mellitus. This evidence is necessary for the development of effective preventive and therapeutic measures to lower uric acid levels in diabetes mellitus patients and to prevent future debilitating DM complications. Objectives: This study aimed at determining the prevalence and factors associated with hyperuricemia among Diabetes Mellitus patients at Kiruddu National Referral Hospital (KNRH), Uganda. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at KNRH DM outpatient clinic from April 2022 to June 2022. A consecutive sampling technique was employed to recruit 171 eligible participants. Later, a questionnaire-based interview was administered and blood samples for serum uric acid and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C) measurement, drawn. We also reviewed the participants’ clinic files to extract additional information on the relevant comorbidities. The collected data was entered into Microsoft excel database and analyzed by Stata version 16. Factors associated with hyperuricemia were analyzed using bivariate and then multivariate analysis. P51 years old (adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR): 3.2, 95% CI: 1.55 - 6.43, p=0.002), Male gender (AOR: 3.8, 95% CI: 1.9 - 7.6, p<0.001), Hypertension (AOR : 2.5, 95% CI: 1.3 - 4.9, p= 0.008), Alcohol use (AOR: 3.3, 95% CI: 1.6 - 6.6, p<0.001) and poor glycaemic control (AOR: 9.1, 95% CI: 3.3 - 25.2, p<0.001) Conclusions: Hyperuricemia among diabetes mellitus patients is common, occurring in about a third of all DM patients attending an ambulatory DM clinic of a tertiary hospital in Uganda. We therefore recommend the routine screening of the identified more-at-risk DM patients for elevated uric acid and the institution of appropriate uric acid lowering measures in order to avert the progression of diabetes mellitus and its complications