Diabetes Care, Vol 8, Issue 5 507-510, Copyright © 1985 by American Diabetes Association
Periarthritis: another duration-related complication of diabetes mellitus
MA Sattar and WA Luqman
The association between periarthritis of the shoulder and diabetes mellitus
is well recognized. A study of 100 hospitalized patients with diabetes was
performed, comparing them with 100 control subjects. The mean +/- SEM age
of the subjects was 47 +/- 2 yr. Nineteen percent of the patients with
diabetes had periarthritis. The afflicted subjects had a higher incidence
of retinopathy (P less than 0.005) and albuminuria (P less than 0.005). The
duration of shoulder pain correlated with the duration of the diabetes
mellitus (P less than 0.001). However, the presence of other complications
in subjects with periarthritis was not as well correlated with the duration
of the diabetes mellitus. These data emphasize the common occurrence of
periarthritis in subjects with diabetes mellitus and its extension to
people of diverse backgrounds.