Health risks and interventions in prediabetes: A review

Prediabetes is a condition which appears prior to the development of diabetes in which blood glucose is abnormally high but do not reach the diagnostic threshold of type 2 diabetes mellitus. It is characterized by a cluster of metabolic abnormalities viz. dysglycemia, dyslipidemia, hypertension, physical inactivity, obesity, insulin resistance, procoagulant state, endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress and inflammation, placing prediabetic subjects to an increased risk for diabetes and its complications. Recent studies demonstrate that complications of diabetes i.e. microvascular and macrovascular complications may manifest in some prediabetic subjects. This article reviews prediabetes-related risk factors and health issues. In addition, this article also highlights the interventions to prevent the development of diabetes in prediabetic subjects.