Chronic complications of type 1 diabetes mellitus in children

Objectives: To evaluate the frequency of chronic complications and identify the predicting factors that may be used for their early detection. Material and Method: The research group included 144 T1DM children with disease duration > 5 years or disease onset during puberty. Complication screening included: full ophthalmologic examination, UAE level determination, diabetic neuropathy assessment. Results: Retinopathy prevalence was 12.5 %. Factors associated with retinopathy were: hyperglycemia, duration of diabetes and dyslipidemia. Microalbuminuria was detected in 23 patients (15.97%) and correlated with HbA1c or insulin therapy regimen. Diabetic neuropathy prevalence (45.8%) was studied in relation to UAE. Peripheral somatic neuropathy was significantly correlated with the diabetic nephropathy stage. Autonomic neuropathy was detected only in 13.8% patients, yet its prevalence increased with the increase in UAE. Conclusions: Chronic diabetic complications are relatively less frequent as compared to adults, yet their evolution is distinct due to the age-specific characteristics.