Abstract
•Diabetes mellitus is major public health problem.•Incidence and prevalence rates of diabetes in Saudi Arabia are increased.•Diabetes is higher among females, older children/adolescent.•Diabetes is higher in urban areas than rural areas.•Further studies of the incidence and prevalence rates diabetes are needed.
This study aimed to report on the trends in incidence and prevalence rates of diabetes mellitus in Saudi Arabia over the last 25 years (1990–2015).
A descriptive review.
A systematic search was conducted for English-language, peer reviewed publications of any research design via Medline, EBSCO, PubMed and Scopus from 1990 to 2015. Of 106 articles retrieved, after removal of duplicates and quality appraisal, 8 studies were included in the review and synthesised based on study characteristics, design and findings.
Studies originated from Saudi Arabia and applied a variety of research designs and tools to diagnosis diabetes. Of the 8 included studies; three reported type 1 diabetes and five on type 2 diabetes. Overall, findings indicated that the incidence and prevalence rate of diabetes is rising particularly among females, older children/adolescent and in urban areas.
Further development are required to assess the health intervention, polices, guidelines, self-management programs in Saudi Arabia.