Background: Diabetes is the 5th cause of mortality among women and the 16th cause of mortality among men. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate and comparison of blood glucose levels, physical activity and blood pressure between medical sciences university employees and general population.
Methods: In across-sectional study using clustered sampling method, 238 subjects were enrolled, while 150 were Shiraz University of Medical Sciences employees and 88 were general population. A detailed standardized form was completed for all participants including demographic data, anthropometric measurements, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, fasting blood glucose, diabetes and hypertension history and medication, physical activity, dietary habits, and nutrition.
Results: The employee's abdominal circumference was 90.68±9.52 centimeter and that of general population was 78.18±26.9 centimeter (P<0.001). The systolic blood pressure of employees and general population were respectively 11.75±1.72 mmHg and 12.73±1.87 mm Hg and their diastolic blood pressure were 7.43±1.1 mmHg and 8.39±1.22 mmHg, respectively (P<0.001). Diabetes frequency in employees and general population was 9.9% and 41.8%, respectively (P<0.001).
Conclusion: The frequency of diabetes in medical personnel was less than general population which may reflect the impact of various factors on the physical activity; personal and social differences in different societies could explain the differences in the prevalence of physical inactivity and also proper control of blood glucose as well as appropriate and regular monitoring of blood glucose by medical staff.