Increased incidence and risk of new diagnoses of diabetes after COVID-19

A recent study published in the journal BMCmedicineresearchers estimated the prevalence of new-onset diabetes following coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Despite numerous vaccines and antiviral treatments against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the COVID-19 pandemic continues to threaten public health and the economy, and to date More than 634 million people have been infected and more than 6.59 million have died. The presence of comorbidities may affect the clinical outcome of COVID-19 patients.

Previous studies have shown that diabetes mellitus (DM) increases the risk of severe COVID-19, in-hospital mortality, and acute respiratory distress syndrome. Notably, a meta-analysis concluded that new-onset diabetes is frequently observed in patients with COVID-19. Similarly, the incidence of her newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes increased in children after COVID-19.

study: Newly Diagnosed Diabetes Risk After COVID-19: A Systematic Review and Meta-AnalysisImage Credit: Proxima Studio / Shutterstock

About research

In the current study, researchers systematically reviewed the literature and performed a meta-analysis to assess the prevalence of new-onset diabetes in patients with COVID-19. We systematically searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), Web of Science, Embase, and PubMed databases to identify studies combining terms related to SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 and and publication dates without restrictions. /Year.

Retrospective or prospective cohort studies were conducted to determine whether 1) COVID-19 as defined according to the International Classification of Diseases Code was the primary exposure, 2) new-onset diabetes was reported, and 3) the relative association between hospitalized patients and the population. was eligible for inclusion if was identified. control. Case reports/series, commentaries, letters, and reviews were not considered.

Results of primary interest in this study were the incidence of new-onset diabetes after SARS-CoV-2 infection and the risk of developing diabetes compared to controls. Subgroup analyzes were performed according to gender, age, type of diabetes, and time of onset, among others. In addition, the authors performed two post hoc subgroup analyzes including her COVID-19 patients with mild to moderate and severe disease.

A standardized spreadsheet was used to extract data on study design, participant characteristics, COVID-19 and DM definitions, covariates, and follow-up time (person-years). Risk of bias was determined using the Newcastle-Ottawa scale. The incidence of new-onset diabetes was calculated from the number of reported newly diagnosed cases of diabetes and the person-years of follow-up.

Diabetes rates between COVID-19 patients and controls were reported as relative risks with 95% confidence intervals.I² Statistics and Cochrane’s Q test assessed heterogeneity between studies.

findings

The search criteria returned 7746 articles. After screening, 7543 studies were excluded. Nine studies were included after all screening, including a full-text review. Six studies were conducted in the United States (US), two in the United Kingdom and one in Germany. Seven studies included adults only, one included adolescents only, and one had no age limit.

Across included studies, there were over 4 million COVID-19 patients and over 34 million controls. Risk of bias was relatively low in the included studies. Mean follow-up time ranged from 64 to 352 days across studies. Overall, the incidence of new-onset DM per 1,000 person-years of follow-up was 15.53. The relative risk of DM after COVID-19 was 1.62 compared with controls.

The relative risk of developing type 1 diabetes was 1.48 and 1.7 for type 2 diabetes. The annual incidence of diabetes per 1,000 person-years was 3.65 in those under 18 years, 15.53 in those 18-65 years, and 17.45 in those 65 years and older. There was a statistically significant association between COVID-19 and risk of developing diabetes. Across all age groups.

The incidence of new-onset diabetes was 3.14 in men and 3 in women per 1,000 person-years. The incidence of new-onset diabetes among his mild to moderate COVID-19 patients was 2.96%, putting him at 1.48 times higher risk compared to controls. Among his severe COVID-19 patients, the incidence of new-onset diabetes was 11.65%, a more than 1.67-fold increased risk.

Conclusion

In summary, the researchers estimated the incidence of new-onset diabetes to be 15.53 per 1,000 person-years. Compared to controls, the relative risk of diabetes in COVID-19 patients was 1.62. Subgroup analyzes showed an increased risk of developing diabetes in COVID-19 patients, regardless of gender, age, type of diabetes, severity of COVID-19, and duration of follow-up.

Nonetheless, the authors found no significant risk of developing unspecified diabetes. Furthermore, accounting for unmeasured confounding factors did not make a difference in the results. These findings warrant continued attention to new-onset diabetes after SARS-CoV-2 infection, especially in his first three months post-COVID-19.