Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of participants in the five cohort studies (n =18,771)
| Characteristics | ARIC [19] | AusDiab [21] | BDES [20] | BMES [22] | MESA [17] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of baseline population | 7,899 | 768 | 3,135 | 2,014 | 4,955 |
| Cumulative incidence of diabetes % (number of cases) | 21.8 (1,723) | 10.8 (83) | 12.1 (379) | 7.6 (153) | 4.9 (243) |
| Follow-up durations after retinal measurement median (interquartile interval) years | 15.7 (11.7-16.1) | 5.0 (4.9-5.0) | 15.0 (5.0-20.0) | 10.0 (5.0-10.0) | 3.1 (3.0-3.3) |
| Year of baseline data collection | 1993-1995 | 1999-2000 | 1988-1990 | 1992-1994 | 2002-2004 |
| Year of most recent follow-up | 2012 | 2004-2005 | 2008-2010 | 2002-2004 | 2006-2008 |
| No. of follow-up visits | 14a | 1 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Age at baseline mean (SD), years | 59.4 (5.6) | 55.4 (12.6) | 59.7 (10.4) | 63.8 (8.4) | 62.7 (10.0) |
| Age range, years | 49-73 | 25-87 | 43-86 | 49-93 | 46-87 |
| Age group, years, n (%) | |||||
| <60 | 4,601 (58.2) | 479 (62.4) | 1,616 (51.5) | 670 (33.3) | 2,080 (42.0) |
| 60-69 | 3,027 (38.3) | 176 (22.9) | 890 (28.4) | 830 (41.2) | 1,508 (30.4) |
| ≥70 | 271 (3.4) | 113 (14.7) | 629 (20.1) | 514 (25.5) | 1,367 (27.6) |
| Men, n (%) | 3,423 (43.3) | 331 (43.1) | 1,369 (43.7) | 833 (41.4) | 2,333 (47.1) |
| Ethnicity, n (%) | |||||
| White | 6,575 (83.2) | 768 (100) | 3,135 (100) | 2,014 (100) | 2,126 (42.9) |
| Black | 1,324 (16.8) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,248 (25.2) |
| Asian/Mexican Americans/other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1,581 (31.9) |
| Current smoker, n (%) | 1,297 (16.4) | 70 (9.3) | 621 (19.8) | 231 (11.8) | 584 (11.8) |
| Current drinker, n (%) | 4,518 (57.2) | 630 (82.4) | 2,771 (88.4) | 1,490 (76.3) | 2,694 (54.4) |
| BMI, mean (SD), kg/m2 | 27.8 (5.1) | 27.8 (5.3) | 28.6 (5.3) | 26.2 (4.3) | 28.0 (5.2) |
| BMI category, n (%), kg/m2 | |||||
| <25.0 | 2,442 (30.9) | 246 (32.2) | 773 (24.7) | 855 (42.8) | 1,503 (30.3) |
| 25.0 to 29.0 | 2,721 (34.5) | 251 (32.9) | 1,071 (34.3) | 724 (36.3) | 1,667 (33.7) |
| ≥30.0 | 2,731 (34.6) | 267 (34.9) | 1,282 (41.0) | 417 (20.9) | 1,783 (36.0) |
| Systolic BP, mean (SD), mmHg | 122.2 (17.9) | 133.7 (18.5) | 129.9 (19.1) | 144.2 (20.1) | 122.8 (20.2) |
| Diastolic BP, mean (SD), mmHg | 71.6 (10.2) | 71.1 (11.7) | 77.9 (10.4) | 83.4 (9.5) | 70.5 (10.0) |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 2,691 (34.1) | 345 (45.2) | 1,427 (45.5) | 1,384 (68.8) | 2,216 (44.7) |
| Plasma glucose level, mean (SD), mmol/l | 5.5 (0.5) | 5.6 (0.6) | 5.0 (0.4)b | 4.9 (0.5) | 5.1 (0.5) |
| Serum total cholesterol, mean (SD), mmol/l | 5.4 (1.0) | 5.6 (1.0) | 6.0 (1.1) | 6.1 (1.1) | 4.9 (0.9) |
| CRAE, mean (SD), μm | 162.2 (16.7) | 176.0 (23.6) | 150.0 (14.8) | 193.9 (20.4) | 144.0 (14.1) |
| CRVE, mean (SD), μm | 192.3 (16.3) | 206.2 (22.2) | 230.2 (22.4) | 225.4 (19.8) | 213.3 (21.5) |
a
In ARIC, one follow-up visit and 13 annual telephone follow-ups
b
Average blood glucose level in mmol/l converted from HbA1c (%)