Glycaemic Control and Dyslipidemia among patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus in diabetes center Al-Baha region, Saudi Arabia

Background: Dyslipidemia is very common in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Dyslipidemia is a substantial risk factor for having cardiovascular disease (CVD) and is associated with higher percentages of morbidity and mortality in patients with type 1 DM. Several studies have shown that poor glycaemic control (PGC) and high level of glycated haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) in patients with T1DM are associated with lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress, both of which contribute to atherosclerosis. Aim: To assess Glycaemic Control and Dyslipidemia in type 1 diabetic patients in diabetic center Al-Baha region, Saudi Arabia. Methodology: A record based descriptive cross sectional study was conducted at diabetes center in AlBaha region, located in the southern area of Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted by reviewing medical files of type 1 diabetic children during the period from 15th of December 2020 to 1st of March 2021. Recently diagnosed type 1 diabetic cases (< 3 months), and those with missing data were excluded. Files fulfilling the inclusion criteria were included using systematic random sampling technique by selecting each 3rd file. The data extracted included child personal data including age and gender, child duration of diabetes, diabetes control by measuring HbA1c, and laboratory investigations including lipid profile. Results: The study included 225 children with type 1 DM. Children's ages ranged from 1 to 21 years with mean age of 10.4 +/- 3.5 years old. Exact of 120 (53.3%) diabetic children were males. The majority of the diabetic children had the disease for 1-4 years (63.6%; 143). Exactly 132 (58.7%) children had hypercholesterolemia with average cholesterol level of .5 +/- 0.95 mmol/ L. As for LDL level, it was abnormal among 9 (4%) diabetic children with average level of 2.74 +/- 0.91 mmol/L. Exactly 12 (5.3%) children had abnormal TG level with average level of 1.55 +/- 0.51 mmol/L. HDL was below normal among 17 (7.6%) children with average level of 1.46 +/- 0.40 mmol/L. Exactly 69.2% of diabetic children aged 10 years or more had dyslipidemia compared to 50.6% of those who were below the age of 20 years with recorded statistical significance (P=.006). Conclusions: In conclusion, the current study revealed that dyslipidemia is a common finding among diabetic cases including type 1 diabetes mellitus. Also, there is a significant association between glycaemic control and having abnormal lipid profile especially for cholesterol and HDL.