28 Frequency and risk factors of lipohypertrophy in children and adolescent with type 1 diabetes in a single tertiary care centre

BackgroundType 1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) is a condition of insulin deficiency due to autoimmune destruction of pancreatic beta cells. Optimum control of TIDM needs insulin administration along with intensive education. Lipohypertrophy is one the complication and risk factor of uncontrolled diabetes.Aim of StudyTo determine the frequency and risk factors of lipohypertrophy in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes in a single tertiary care centre.MethodsThis descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted for the period of 6 months at University of Child Health Sciences, The Children’s Hospital, Lahore, Pakistan after the approval of ethical review committee. A total of 148 children and adolescents with type 1 diabetic patients were enrolled. All the children were examined for the presence of lipohypertrophy (LH) and different risk factors for lipohypertrophy were statistically assessed to find its significance.ResultsMean age of children and adolescent with Type 1 Diabetes was 6.74 ± 2.67 years (3 to 12 years). Male and female were 85 (57.43%) and 63 (42.57%) respectively. Frequency of lipohypertrophy was found in 58/148 (39.19%) patients with male predominance (40/85). Failure to change the injection sites and younger age group were the most important risk factors for lipohypertrophy.Conclusion(s)Frequency of lipohypertrophy (LH) is higher among children and adolescent with T1DM. Most important risk factors for lipohypertrophy were a younger age group, failure to change the injection sites, syringe reuse and poor diabetes control. This shows that patient education is of utmost importance in the prevention of LH, highlighting the need to correctly rotate the injection sites, to avoid needle reuse, and diabetes control.