New diagnoses of type 1 diabetes mellitus in children during the COVID-19 pandemic Regional multicenter study in Spain.

Introduction: The aim of this study is to determine whether during the year 2020, coinciding with the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an increase in the incidence of diabetes mellitus in children compared to the previous 2 years. It is also to find out if lockdowns and the difficulty providing face-to-face care in the health system have led to children showing more severe symptoms at the time of diagnosis.

Material And Methods: Retrospective observational multicenter study of the province of Tarragona where data is collected from new diagnoses of type 1 diabetes mellitus in patients under the age of 15 during the year 2020 and compared with years 2018 and 2019.

Results: The number of new diagnoses of type 1 diabetes during 2020 was 37 cases compared to 2019 and 2018 which was 23 and 29 respectively. The median age at onset was 9 years, 54% males. There was an increase in new diagnoses in the range of 10 to14-year-olds, with a decrease in the range of 0-4 year-olds. In 2020, the incidence in the group of patients with families from the Maghreb area rose from 52.2 cases per 100,000 population/year (c/10 p-y) in 2019 to 135.8 in 2020. Compared to the previous year, 2020 showed a significant decrease of ketoacidosis at the onset. None of the patients was diagnosed with COVID-19 during admission.

Conclusion: During the year 2020 concurring with the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an increase in the number of new diagnoses of type 1 diabetes mellitus in pediatrics. Contrary to expectations, the presentation did not worsen by decreasing the proportions of ketoacidosis at onset. This data would suggest that, although attendance in the different health facilities dropped drastically during the year 2020 at the expense of virtual consultations, health systems and families were able to detect the symptoms of the disease early.