Children who recover from catching covid have a significantly increased risk of developing type 1 diabetes. This is confirmed by a new US study which studied the electronic health records of around 572,000 children and adolescents under 18 who contracted covid between March 2020 and December 2021.
At the very beginning of this year 2022, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had reviewed the health insurance records of more than 2.5 million American children, and found that those who had had the Covid were 31% more likely to develop diabetes. On their side,German scientists had analyzed the incidence of type 1 diabetes in children and adolescents from January 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, and found “a significant increase” in the number of cases.
This new study which compared children who had been diagnosed with Covid-19 with children who had contracted other types of lung infections therefore supports these conclusions. In fact, the researchers found that within 6 months of a Covid-19 infection, 123 young patients had been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, compared to only 72 patients infected with another lung disease.
“The underlying causes are still unknown” underline the German scientists. The increase in the number of cases could be due to the establishment of the diagnosis in children. But the covid could also have caused a rise in blood sugar in children predisposed to diabetes.
Sources :
- Association of SARS-CoV-2 Infection With New-Onset Type 1 Diabetes Among Pediatric Patients From 2020 to 2021Jama pediatrics, September 2022
- Incidence of New-Onset Type 1 Diabetes Among US Children During the COVID-19 Global PandemicJama pediatrics, January 2022
