Increase in new-onset type 1 diabetes diagnoses among Brazilian children and adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to determine if there was a rise in new T1DM cases in children during the pandemic in a large metropolitan area in Brazil.

METHODS

The authors conducted a cross-sectional study at five public tertiary care centers that specialize in diabetes in children, comparing all new T1DM cases (ages 0.5-18y) diagnosed from March 2020 to December 2021 (pandemic period, PP) with those from March 2018 to December 2019 (historical period, HP).

RESULTS

There were 167 new cases in the PP compared to 99 in the HP, reflecting a 68.7 % rise, with a notable peak observed in the third quarter of 2020 (p = 0.006). The average age of diagnosis was 8.4 ± 4.2 years in the PP and 7.5 ± 3.6 years in the HP, with no significant difference (p = 0.06). The gender distribution, BMI Z scores, and duration of diabetes symptoms before diagnosis were similar. The incidence of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) at onset was elevated but did not increase during the pandemic (62.6 % historical vs. 59.3 % pandemic period). During the PP, 24 % of patients reported symptoms of SARS-CoV-2 infection before the diagnosis of T1DM or at admission, and 13 % (7/53) of tested patients were positive for SARS-CoV-2.

CONCLUSIONS

The present findings indicate a significant rise in new T1DM cases among children during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to prior years, without differences in DKA at onset.