Journal Article

Association Between Maternal Diabetes in Utero and Age at Offspring's Diagnosis of Type 2 Diabetes

Mayer-Davis, Beth, Dabelea, Dana, Liese, Angela D, Loots, Beth, Pettitt, David J, Hillier, Teresa A, Lawrence, Jean M, Beyer, Jennifer, Linder, Barbara, Liu, Lenna, Imperatore, Giuseppina, Dolan, Lawrence M

2008

Overview

OBJECTIVE:--The purpose of this study was to examine age of diabetes diagnosis in youth who have a parent with diabetes by diabetes type and whether the parent's diabetes was diagnosed before or after the youth's birth. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS--The cohort comprised SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study participants (diabetes diagnosis 2001-2005) with a diabetic parent. SEARCH is a multicenter survey of youth with diabetes diagnosed before age 20 years. RESULTS:--Youth with type 2 diabetes were more likely to have a parent with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes (mother 39.3%; father 21.2%) than youth with type 1 diabetes (5.3 and 6.7%, respectively, P < 0.001 for each). Type 2 diabetes was diagnosed 1.68 years earlier among those exposed to diabetes in utero (n = 174) than among those whose mothers' diabetes was diagnosed later (P = 0.018, controlled for maternal diagnosis age, paternal diabetes, sex, and race/ethnicity). Age at diagnosis of type 1 diabetes for 269 youth with and without in utero exposure did not differ significantly (difference 0.96 year, P = 0.403 after adjustment). Controlled for the father's age of diagnosis, father's diabetes before the child's birth was not associated with age at diagnosis (P = 0.078 for type 1 diabetes; P = 0.140 for type 2 diabetes). CONCLUSIONS:--Type 2 diabetes was diagnosed at younger ages among those exposed to hyperglycemia in utero. Among youth with type 1 diabetes, the effect of the intrauterine exposure was not significant when controlled for mother's age of diagnosis. This study helps explain why other studies have found higher age-specific rates of type 2 diabetes among offspring of women with diabetes.

• Publisher: American Diabetes Association
• Subject: Adolescent / Age Factors / Biological and medical sciences / Child / children / Children & youth / Diabetes / Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 - diagnosis / Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - diagnosis / Diabetes. Impaired glucose tolerance / Endocrine pancreas. Apud cells (diseases) / Endocrinopathies / Epidemiology/Health Services Research / Etiopathogenesis. Screening. Investigations. Target tissue resistance / Female / Fetuses / Health surveys / Humans / hyperglycemia / insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus / Male / Medical sciences / Metabolic diseases / Miscellaneous / mothers / Multivariate Analysis / nationalities and ethnic groups / noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus / Pregnancy / Pregnancy in Diabetics / Public health. Hygiene / Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine / Regression Analysis / Surveys / Teenagers / Type 2 diabetes / women / Youth