Incidence of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus and Characteristics of Diabetic Ketoacidosis in Children and Adolescents during the First Two Years of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Vojvodina
Ivana Vorgučin,
Marijana Savin,
Đurđina Stanković,
Dejan Miljković,
Tatjana Ilić,
Danijela Simić,
Mirjana Vrebalov,
Borko Milanović,
Nenad Barišić,
Vesna Stojanović,
Gordana Vijatov-Đurić,
Katarina Koprivšek,
Gordana Vilotijević-Dautović,
Jelena Antić
Affiliations
Ivana Vorgučin
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Marijana Savin
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Đurđina Stanković
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Dejan Miljković
Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Tatjana Ilić
General Hospital Subotica, 24000 Subotica, Serbia
Danijela Simić
General Hospital Sombor, 25000 Sombor, Serbia
Mirjana Vrebalov
General Hospital Zrenjanin, 23000 Zrenjanin, Serbia
Borko Milanović
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Nenad Barišić
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Vesna Stojanović
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Gordana Vijatov-Đurić
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Katarina Koprivšek
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Gordana Vilotijević-Dautović
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Jelena Antić
Institute for Child and Youth Health Care of Vojvodina, 21000 Novi Sad, Serbia
Background and Objectives: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant changes globally, which has also affected patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). This study aimed to determine the incidence of T1DM and the characteristics of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) during the pandemic comparing it to pre-pandemic period. Materials and Methods: Data from patients Results: In 2021, the highest incidence of T1DM in the last five years was recorded, 17.3/100,000. During the pandemic period (2020–2021), there were 99 new-onset T1DM, of which 42.4% presented in DKA, which is significantly higher than in the pre-pandemic period (34.1%). During the pandemic, symptom duration of T1DM lasted significantly longer than before the COVID-19 period. At the age of 10–14 years, the highest incidence of T1DM and COVID-19, the highest frequency rate of DKA, and severe DKA were observed. Conclusions: The pandemic is associated with a high incidence rate of T1DM, longer duration of symptoms of T1DM, a high frequency of DKA, and a severe DKA at diagnosis. Patients aged 10–14 years are a risk group for the occurrence of T1DM with severe clinical presentation. Additional studies are needed with a longer study period and in a wider geographical area, with data on exposure to COVID-19 infection, the permanence of new-onset T1DM, and the psychosocial impact of the pandemic.
