The incidence of juvenile diabetes mellitus in New Zealand.

The incidence of juvenile diabetes in New Zealand over a five year period (1968--1972) was determined from hospital admission data stored at the Department of Health, National Statistics Centre. The average annual incidence for persons under 20 years was 10.4 persons/100,000. There was no sex difference below 16 years, and the increased incidence among females 16--19 years could be attributed to pregnancy. There was a 1.4-fold higher incidence in the South Island than in the North Island. There were no regular seasonal trends. The incidence was constant between 1--9 years increasing to a sustained 2.2-fold higher level from 11 years. The absence of childhood peaks and the sustained higher incidence in adolescence is in contrast to European studies.