Glycemic Control and Long-term Complications in Pediatric Onset Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus: A Single-center Experience from Northern India

Childhood and adolescent diabetes in the Indian subcontinent: A glass half full

“…There are a few studies that report mean or median HbA1c to be 67 to 95 mmol/mmol (8.3%-10.8%). 8,19,28 Proliferative retinopathy and nephropathy were present in 3.6% to 5% and 3% to 6.8% of patients, respectively, at a median age of 16.5 to 20 years and a duration of diabetes of 5 to 9 years. In addition, Sudhanshu et al 8 reported an unacceptably high mortality rate of 1.1 per 100 patient years over 2549 patient years of follow-up.…”

“…Financial and social independence for adolescents and young adults is delayed compared to that in developed nations; this may be a factor leading to the observation in recent studies from India that glycemic control does not worsen in adolescence. 8,22 Support of the extended family is common and What do we know about the long-term outcome of T1DM in our country? There are a few studies that report mean or median HbA1c to be 67 to 95 mmol/mmol (8.3%-10.8%).…”

“…Eating traditional home‐cooked food with the family is still the norm in the majority of households. Financial and social independence for adolescents and young adults is delayed compared to that in developed nations; this may be a factor leading to the observation in recent studies from India that glycemic control does not worsen in adolescence 8,22 . Support of the extended family is common and valuable in times of medical crises.…”

“…What do we know about the long‐term outcome of T1DM in our country? There are a few studies that report mean or median HbA1c to be 67 to 95 mmol/mmol (8.3%‐10.8%) 8,19,28 . Proliferative retinopathy and nephropathy were present in 3.6% to 5% and 3% to 6.8% of patients, respectively, at a median age of 16.5 to 20 years and a duration of diabetes of 5 to 9 years.…”

Type 1 Diabetes in India: The Numbers Show the Way Ahead

“…An update of the data from Lucknow, on 512 T1D patients with onset before 18 years during January 1991 to June 2015, is reported in this issue of Indian Pediatrics [9]. Their observations partly reflect the changing face of T1D: higher proportion with onset before 5 years of age, 97% patients on multiple daily injections (MDI) regimen, almost half on analog basal insulin, and lower rates of retinopathy.…”