Neuropsychiatric disorders at the presentation of type 2 diabetes mellitus in children

Diabetes and depression: a review of the literature

Depression affects millions of people in the United States. Drugs used to treat depression can lead to weight gain, which could predispose a person to type 2 diabetes. Also, certain medications that may be used to treat depression with psychotic features can lead to metabolic syndrome and new-onset diabetes. Diabetes is another chronic health care condition that affects millions of people in the United States. Diabetes is the leading cause of nontraumatic amputations and a leading cause of blindness. Both conditions can result in a lower quality of life. Clinicians face challenges in treating either condition, but can face greater ones when the conditions occur together. This article reviews the literature concerning depression and diabetes.

Prevalence of diabetes complications in adolescents with type 2 compared with type 1 diabetes

OBJECTIVE

To compare the prevalence of diabetes complications and their risk factors in youth with type 1 versus type 2 diabetes.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

We performed a comparative clinic-based study of 1,433 patients with type 1 diabetes and 68 patients with type 2 diabetes aged <18 years from New South Wales, Australia. Retinopathy was assessed by seven-field stereoscopic retinal photography; albumin excretion rate from three consecutive, timed, overnight urine collections; peripheral neuropathy by thermal and vibration threshold; and autonomic neuropathy by pupillometry. HbA(1c) (A1C) and lipids were measured in all patients and C-peptide in patients with type 2 diabetes.

RESULTS

In patients with type 1 versus type 2 diabetes, median (interquartile range) age was 15.7 years (13.9-17.0) and 15.3 years (13.6-16.4), respectively (P = 0.2), whereas median diabetes duration was 6.8 years (4.7-9.6) and 1.3 years (0.6-3.1), respectively (P < 0.0001). Retinopathy was significantly more common in patients with type 1 diabetes (20 vs. 4%, P = 0.04), while microalbuminuria and hypertension were significantly less common (6 and 16% in type 1 diabetes vs. 28 and 36% in type 2 diabetes). Rates of peripheral and autonomic neuropathy were similar (27 and 61% in type 1 diabetes vs. 21 and 57% in type 2 diabetes). In multivariate analyses, microalbuminuria was significantly associated with older age (odds ratio 1.3 [95% CI 1.2-1.5], P < 0.001) and systolic hypertension (3.63 [2.0-6.3], P < 0.001) in type 1 diabetes, while only higher A1C (1.7 [1.3-2.9], P = 0.002) was significant in patients with type 2 diabetes.

CONCLUSIONS

Youth with type 2 diabetes have significantly higher rates of microalbuminuria and hypertension than their peers with type 1 diabetes, despite shorter diabetes duration and lower A1C. The results of this study support recommendations for early complications screening and aggressive targeting of glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes.