Diabetes, obesity and other co-morbidities among the non-Indigenous population of the Northern Territory: an analysis of the two AusDiab surveys, 2000 and 2005

Prior to the AusDiab study, there was no reliable estimate of the prevalence of undiagnosed diabetes in Australia. Following the launch of the National Diabetes Strategy and Implementation Plan in 1998, the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care commissioned the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle (AusDiab) Study. The AusDiab Study was designed to be representative of the general population of Australia aged 25 years and over. A base-line study was conducted in each jurisdiction of Australia, including the Northern Territory (NT) in 2000, and a follow-up study conducted five years later in 2005. Six key matters of interest were examined in the study, including diabetes and pre-diabetes, overweight and obesity, dyslipidaemia, hypertension, smoking and exercise.

This article reports on the results of examinations and blood tests performed on 1427 NT non-Indigenous residents (669 men (46.9%) and 758 women (53.1%)) who participated in the 2000 AusDiab study and 789 residents (356 men (45.5%) and 427 women (54.5%) who returned for the 2005 follow-up study.