Pathogenesis of NIDDM in Pima Indians

Clifton Bogardus; Stephen Lillioja; Peter H Bennett

doi:10.2337/diacare.14.7.685

Supplement 3: Diabetes in Hispanic Americans

Pathogenesis of NIDDM in Pima Indians

Clifton Bogardus, MD,
Stephen Lillioja, MB, ChB, FRACP and
Peter H Bennett, MB, FRCP

Clinical Diabetes and Nutrition Section, Phoenix Epidemiology and Clinical Research Branch, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health Phoenix, Arizona

Address correspondence and reprint requests to Clifton Bogardus, MD, National Institutes of Health, 4212 North 16th Street, Room 541, Phoenix, AZ 85016.

Diabetes Care 1991 Jul; 14(7): 685-690. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.14.7.685

Abstract

The Pima Indians of Arizona have the highest reported prevalence and incidence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) of any population in the world. A cross-sectional and longitudinal study was begun in 1982 to determine the metabolic characteristic(s) that is (are) predictive of the development of NIDDM and to document the sequence of metabolic events that occur with the transition from normal to impaired glucose tolerance and then to diabetes. Preliminary analyses suggest that insulin resistance is a primary abnormality predisposing Pima Indians to develop impaired glucose tolerance, and that the development of diabetes occurs with subsequent pancreatic failure.