The Indian Diabetes Risk Score was initially developed by the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation (MDRF-IDRS) to help detect undiagnosed Type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in the community. Soon it was found that the MDRF-IDRS could also help to predict incident diabetes, metabolic syndrome, coronary artery disease (CAD), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease as well as sleep disorders in the community. It helps to differentiate T2DM from non-T2DM. Finally, it also helps to identify those with CAD, peripheral vascular disease and neuropathy among those with T2DM. Thus, the MDRF-IDRS is a simple, virtually ‘no cost’ tool which is useful in several clinical and epidemiological settings.

Background: The diabetes electronic medical record (DEMR) has emerged as an effective information management tool with the potential to improve diabetes care and research. This study reports on the usefulness of the DEMR system at Dr. Mohan's Diabetes Specialities Centre (DMDSC), Chennai, India, for clinical and research purposes. Methods: The DEMR, set up in 1996 at DMDSC, connects data of nine centers/clinics in different geographical areas in Southern India. The present data analysis is based on a total of 226,228 patients registered in the DEMR system at DMDSC between the years 1991 and 2010. Results: The DEMR included data of 139,906 male and 86,322 female patients, of whom 92.6% had type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), 1.4% had type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), and the rest had other types. Patients with T2DM had higher prevalence rates of neuropathy (33.1% vs 13.0%, p < .001), microalbuminuria (25.5% vs 20.0%, p < .001), coronary artery disease (17.5% vs 9.2%, p < .001) and peripheral vascular disease (3.9% vs 2.8%, p = .017) compared with T1DM patients, while prevalence of diabetic retinopathy was similar (37.9% vs 35.7%, p = .06). Prevalence of microvascular and macrovascular complications of diabetes increased with increasing glycated hemoglobin levels ( p for trend < .001) and increasing diabetes duration ( p for trend < .001). Conclusions: The DEMR helps track diabetes care and is a valuable tool for research.

In Asian Indians, use of A1c criteria would result in markedly higher prevalence rates of diabetes. It also identifies a different set of individuals with milder glucose intolerance and lower serum triglyceride levels.