Apparent Insulin Deficiency in an Adult African Population With New-Onset Type 2 Diabetes

UNLABELLED: Identifying patients with new-onset type 2 diabetes who have insulin deficiency can aid in timely insulin replacement therapy. In this study, we measured fasting C-peptide concentration to assess endogenous insulin secretion and determine the prevalence and characteristics of patients with insulin deficiency in adult Ugandan patients with confirmed type 2 diabetes at presentation. METHODS: Adult patients with new-onset diabetes were recruited from seven tertiary hospitals in Uganda. Participants who were positive for the three islet autoantibodies were excluded. Fasting C-peptide concentrations were measured in 494 adult patients, and insulin deficiency was defined as a fasting C-peptide concentration