Association of Type 1 Diabetes vs Type 2 Diabetes Diagnosed During Childhood and Adolescence With Complications During Teenage Years and Young Adulthood

Abstract

The increased prevalence of type 2 diabetes among children and adolescents has been relatively recent in most populations,^1-3 beginning in the early to mid-1990s. Additionally, a long-term increase in type 1 diabetes has been observed both worldwide⁴ and in the United States.³ These recent epidemiologic trends in type 1 and type 2 diabetes diagnosed in young individuals raise the question of whether the pattern of complications differs by diabetes type at similar ages and diabetes duration. Recent studies have reported higher prevalence of some^5-7 but not all⁸ complications in children and adolescents with type 2 diabetes compared with those with type 1. Reasons for discrepancies across previous studies include population differences, relatively small sample sizes, variable length of duration of diabetes at outcome assessment, variable ages, and reliance on routine clinical or administrative records to document outcomes. Preliminary findings have suggested that there is a higher prevalence of selected complications and risk factors among adolescents and young adults with type 2 diabetes compared with type 1.⁹