The Relationships Between Hemoglobin and Diabetes Factors (Insulin Resistance, Glucose Effectiveness, First- and Second-Phase Insulin Secretion) in Old Chinese

Summary Background Diabetes is characterized by increased insulin resistance (IR) and decreased insulin secretion. The roles of glucose effectiveness (GE), first- and second-phase insulin secretion (FPIS, SPIS) are often overlooked. We denote these factors as diabetic factors (DF). Hemoglobin (Hb) has been shown to be related to IR and FPIS, but not to SPIS and GE. The aims of this study are to investigate the relationships between Hb and DFs and to compare which one has the tightest correlation with Hb in old Chinese. Methods We randomly enrolled 5109 men and 5851 women, whose age were over 65 years old. Subjects, who were obese or on medications, were excluded. Simple correlation was applied to evaluate the relationships between Hb and 4 DFs. To compare the relative tightness between each correlation lines, all the units of the DFs were transformed into percentage. Results All the biochemistry data were higher in subjects with metabolic syndrome (MetS) in both genders, except for GE and HDL. Similar trends were also noted when dividing subjects into quartiles of Hb. The results of simple correlation showed that all the DFs are significantly related to Hb except for FPIS in women. The association between Hb and GE is negative. After transforming the different units into percentage, the relationships with Hb, from the highest to lowest, were IR, SPIS, GE and FPIS in both genders. Conclusion Our data show that all DFs are almost related to Hb. IR has the tightest correlation with Hb in old Chinese.