Prevalence of type 1 diabetes mellitus in school children 6–18 years old in Diyarbakır, Southeastern Anatolian Region of Turkey

Authors: HÜSEYİN DEMİRBİLEK, MEHMET NURİ ÖZBEK

Abstract: The frequency of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) differs according to factors like geographical location, ethnicity, sex, and age. There are few studies investigating T1DM prevalence in the children of Turkey or of the Southeastern Anatolian Region. We aimed to define T1DM prevalence and to investigate geographic and sociodemographic features in school children 6-18 years old living in Diyarbakır. Materials and methods: The number of children with T1DM and the total number of children at the schools were defined in cooperation with the Diyarbakır Provincial Education Directorate. T1DM prevalence was calculated with the obtained data. Results: The number of school children 6-18 years old with T1DM in Diyarbakır was 176; and the total number of school children was 419,526. The prevalence of T1DM was found as 0.42/1000. Of the T1DM patients, 94 (53.4%) were female and 82 (46.6%) were male; the female-to-male ratio was 1.2/1. The prevalence of females (0.47/103) was higher than that of males (0.37/103). It was 0.47/103 in the city center of Diyarbakır, higher than that calculated in the other districts of the city (0.35/103). Conclusion: The defined prevalence of T1DM in school children 6-18 years old in Diyarbakır in the Southeastern Anatolian Region of Turkey is higher than the prevalence reported from Ankara in 1993 and is lower than the prevalence reported from İstanbul in 2009. Results indicated variability in T1DM frequency among regions of Turkey.

Keywords: Type 1 diabetes mellitus, prevalence, school children, epidemiology

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