Association of Diabetic Ketoacidosis in Childhood New-Onset Type 1 Diabetes With Day of Presentation in Germany

OBJECTIVE Whether the day of the week on which the child presents affects timely diagnosis and risk of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) in children with new-onset type 1 diabetes (T1D) is not known. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We used data of 30,717 children with new-onset T1D during the last 10 years from the German Prospective Diabetes Registry. We determined the odds ratios of T1D diagnosis and DKA on a weekday, public holiday, and school vacation. RESULTS Compared with workdays, the odds ratios of being diagnosed with T1D were lower on weekends (0.39 [95% CI, 0.38-0.41]), public holidays (0.57 [0.53-0.63]), and school vacations (0.83 [0.80-0.85]). The odds of DKA diagnosis were also reduced on weekends (0.55 [0.52-0.59]), public holidays (0.73 [0.63-0.84]), and school vacations (0.85 [0.80-0.90]). Results did not change during the coronavirus 2019 pandemic. CONCLUSIONS New-onset T1D and DKA in children are more often diagnosed during weekdays than weekends and holidays.