Epidemiology and Public HealthIDF2022-0830 Clinical Characteristics of Autoantibody-Negative Type 1 Diabetes Onset in Children During the COVID-19 Era in Kuwait
Section snippets
Background
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a disorder characterized by autoimmune destruction of panceratic β cells and decreased insulin production. Studies on autoantibody-negative T1D are limited.
Aim
In this study, we investigated the clinical characteristics of newly diagnosed children with autoantibody-negative T1D during the COVID-19 pandemic period in comparison to those diagnosed in the pre-pandemic period in Kuwait using data from the Childhood Diabetes Onset electronic Registry (CODeR).
Method
Children aged ≤14 years at T1D onset were included. Diagnosis of T1D was according to ISPAD 2018 guidelines. Autoantibody-negative T1D is identified as the absence of pancreatic islet autoantibodies. Data on 52 children with T1D diagnosed during the COVID-19 pandemic between February 24th, 2020, and February 23rd, 2022 (pandemic group) were compared to data on 26 children diagnosed between January 1st, 2017, and February 23rd, 2022 (pre-pandemic group).
Results
The median age at onset was similar in the pandemic group compared to the pre-pandemic group (7.9 (5.0–9.6) vs 8.1 (5.7–10.7), p value = 0.35, respectively) as well as the gender distribution, p value = 0.64. In both groups, frequency of Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) didn’t differ (54.3% vs 61.9%, p value = 0.6, respectively) nor did ICU admission rates (18.4% vs 23.1%, p value = 0.76, respectively). No significant differences were observed in HbA1c levels (11.75% (10.83–13.7) vs 11.70%
Conclusion
The COVID-19 pandemic had no effect on the clinical presentation of children with autoantibody-negative T1D onset compared to previous years. Further studies are needed to better understand the etiology of its distinct sub-types of T1D and determine the disease course, clinical features, outcome, and other possible factors.