Serum ghrelin level in type 2 diabetes mellitus postmenopausal women in relation to body mass index

Abstract

Background: People living with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) are more vulnerable to various forms of both short- and long-term complications, which often lead to their premature death. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of serum level of ghrelin in diabetic postmenopausal, nondiabetic obese menopausal, and control healthy women. Materials and Methods: This case–control study included 90 participants (30 diabetic postmenopausal women, 30 nondiabetic obese menopausal women with body mass index (BMI) equal or >30, and 30 control healthy participants). Full history for referred individuals was taken and height and body weight were measured. BMI <18.5 was considered underweight, between 18.5 and 24.9 was a normal, between 25 and 29.9 was overweight, and more than 30 was obese. Results: Age ranged between 45 and 80 years old. Serum ghrelin had highly significant difference in obese comparison to both diabetes and control groups, and there is a significant difference between obese and diabetes with higher concentration in obese than diabetic group. Mean fasting blood glucose (FBG) showed a highly significant difference between obese, diabetes, and control groups with higher concentration in both obese and diabetes participants, and specifically, there is a significant difference between diabetes and obese groups with higher concentration in diabetic than obese group. BMI showed a significant difference and higher level in obese in comparison to other two groups. The serum ghrelin had a moderate significant correlation with FBG in obese but insignificant correlation with both diabetes and control groups. FBG shows no significant correlation with BMI in all three groups. Conclusion: There is an inverse relationship between fasting glucose and ghrelin level in type 2 diabetic patients and positive correlation in obesity. The study also shows that hyperglycemia due to disturbance in glucose metabolism may result in suppression of ghrelin level in type 2 DM.