Dyslipidemia in type 1 diabetes mellitus: Relation to diabetes duration, glycemic control, body habitus, dietary intake and other epidemiological risk factors

BackgroundDiabetes is associated with a high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The classic “diabetic dyslipidemia” is mostly described as hypertriglyceridemia and low levels of HDL-C. Elevated LDL-C is an established risk factor for CVD.ObjectiveIdentify the pattern of dyslipidemia in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus regularly following at Diabetes Endocrine and Metabolism Pediatric Unit (DEMPU) at Children’s Hospital of Cairo University; and to detect its relation to different risk factors.MethodsSixty children and adolescents with T1DM, (34 males and 26 females, mean age 12.5 ± 2.4 years and mean duration of diabetes 4.3 ± 2.7 years) were evaluated by full history and clinical examination including 3 day dietetic history for analysis, BMI and waist circumference. Records were revised for mean blood glucose and HbA1c. Fasting lipid profile (total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL-C and LDL-C) was performed. Thirty-nine healthy age and sex matched children were included as control for lipid profile.ResultsDyslipidemia significantly more frequent among T1DM children and adolescents compared to control subjects (39/60, 65% vs. 11/39, 28.2%, p < 0.001); and the dyslipidemic (39/60) compared to normoalbuminuric (21/60) children had significantly higher mean waist circumference. Both groups were comparable regarding age, age at onset and duration of diabetes, family history of diabetes and CVD, degree of glycemic control and dietary analysis.ConclusionDyslipidemia is significantly more frequent in children and adolescents with T1DM compared to non-diabetic peers. The most frequent type of dyslipidemia was high LDL-C and low HDL-C in the dyslipidemic group.