Validation of the Finnish Type 2 Diabetes Risk Score (FINDRISC) with the OGTT in Health Care Practices in Europe

•Variability of FINDRISC score justity its validation for specific populations.•Community and opportunistic screening at primary care setting in Europa.•The optimal FINDRISC score for detecting diabetes in the community is was 14 point.•The FINDRISC is an useful tool for detecting diabetes in Europe. /hypothesis. To determine the best cut-off threshold value of the Finnish Diabetes Risk Score (FINDRISC) for the detection of diabetes and non-diabetic hyperglycaemia in people 35 years or older at primary health care settings in Europe. Cross-sectional study in 11,444 adults from primary health care centres using community and opportunistic screening approaches. All participants completed the FINDRISC questionnaire and underwent a 2-hour oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). The FINDRISC performance was assessed by the area under the curve (AUC) using receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis. The sensitivity, specificity, Youdeńs index, positive and negative prediction values for different FINDRISC cut-offs were calculated. The optimal FINDRISC value for detecting both diabetes or glucose impairment in the community - screened sample was 14 point with the associated AUC 0.75,5 (95 %CI 0.73,7–0.77,3). The optimal score in the opportunistic screening sample was 16 with the associated AUC only 0.60,4 (95% CI 0.56, 4–0.64, 4). The FINDRISC is a non-invasive tool useful for detecting people with unknown diabetes and glucose impairment in people visiting primary health centres in Europe.