This report is an overview of type 2 diabetes (DT2) in the North African immigrant population living in France.

Data were collected in two separate cross-sectional national surveys. DT2 prevalence was estimated using a population-based survey involving 13 959 people aged ≥ 45 years (EDS), while health status and quality of care were evaluated using a sample of 3894 DT2 patients (ENTRED).

Prevalence of DT2 and obesity was 14.0% [CI 95%: 9.9; 18.0] and 20.5% [15.7; 25.3], respectively, in participants born in North Africa (BNA) and 7.5% [7.0; 8.0] and 15.8% [14.7; 16.8], respectively, in those born in France (BIF). DT2 was associated with region of birth in women after adjusting for age, body mass index and income or occupation, but not after adjusting for education level. In men, DT2 was not associated with region of birth. BNA and BIF patients with diabetes frequently benefited from free medical coverage (88% vs. 84%, respectively), although BNA diabetic patients visited a general practitioner less frequently than BIF (8.5 vs. 9.0 visits/year, respectively). The percentage of BNA vs. BIF diabetes patients tested three times a year for HbA_1c was lower (39% vs. 44%), while HbA_1c was higher in BNA vs. BIF diabetics (> 8%: 30% vs. 15%). Ophthalmological complications were also more frequent in BNA vs. BIF patients with diabetes (25% vs. 18%, respectively).

The greater prevalence of DT2 in BNA women and the poorer glycaemic control observed in the BNA population overall both probably contribute to disparity in diabetes mortality compared with BIF diabetics, a fact that has been observed in previous studies.