Assessment of Chromium levels in Pre-diabetic Patients Referred to Shariati Hospital

Supplementations of chromium (Cr) have been shown to exert beneficial effects for the management of type-2 diabetes, as reflected by a decline in insulin response. Prevalence of chromium deficiency in patients with prediabetes is not well understood; the aim of this study was to evaluated the amount of this prevalence.

In this cross-sectional descriptive study, were recruited 132 patients with prediabetes. Participants were randomly selected from those referred to the Shariati hospital, Isfahan, Iran. Fasting venous blood samples were collected from participants to measure the levels of chromium, insulin, fasting blood sugar and 2-hour post load plasma glucose. Body mass index was calculated. Determination of Cr was carried out by atomic absorption spectrometry.

Of 132 patients, 24 were excluded due to failure to complete the test. Among remained patients, 34 (31.5%) had chromium deficiency, and 74 (68.5%) had normal serum levels of chromium. A significant inverse relationship was found between chromium levels and age in normal group.

Levels of chromium deficiency is relatively common in patients with prediabetes and it is necessary to eliminate chromium deficiency in screening patients for diabetes.