Frequency and risk factors for posttransplant diabetes mellitus in Iranian renal transplant patients.

Posttransplant diabetes mellitus (PTDM) is a frequent complication of renal transplantation. This study was performed to determine the prevalence of and risk factors for PTDM among Iranian renal transplant recipients. In this cross-sectional study, 300 patients were studied in 2007. It included questionnaires with clinical data and blood samples. PTDM was defined as DM without a pretransplant history. The 184 (61.3%) male and 116 (38.7%) female patients of overall mean age of 41.2 +/- 13.5 years were 67.4 +/- 48.6 months after the procedure. PTDM was observed in 24 patients (8%). The mean interval to develop PTDM was 19.9 +/- 31.5 months. The mean age of PTDM patients was significantly higher than non-PTDM patients: 49.4 +/- 13.4 vs 40.6 +/- 13.4 years (P < .005). The mean serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL) was higher among PTDM compared with non-PTDM patients: 71.4 +/- 21 vs 58.6 +/- 14.6 (P < .005). There was a trend toward higher serum low-density lipoprotein (LDL) among PTDM patients: 109.2 +/- 29.5 vs 96.2 +/- 25.2 (P = .06). A recent admission was more frequent among PTDM patients (58.3% vs 28.7%; P < .005), as was history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection (6% vs 1%; P < .01). There was no significant difference in doses of immunosuppressive drugs and doses atenolol, mean body mass index, DM family history, rejection, cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection, or frequency of positive anti-HCV antibody between the 2 groups. Our study showed an 8% prevalence of PTDM. Mean age, history of recent admissions and HCV infection, as well as mean plasma HDL and LDL levels were higher among PTDM patients.