Downs syndrome patients four times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes

A recent study found that young Downs syndrome patients have four times more incidence of type 2 diabetes than controls due to higher body mass index. The study was published in the journal Diabetes Care.  

Down syndrome (DS) is the most common form of chromosomal trisomy. The risk of diabetes is increased by the genetic factors in DS. So, researchers conducted a study to determine whether DS is associated with an increased incidence of diabetes and the relationship with obesity across the lifespan compared with control patients. Based on the data from UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink, a population-based cohort study was performed and analyzed from 1990 to 2020. 

RESULTS

• A total of 9,917 patients with DS and 38,266 control patients were analyzed.
• Diabetes rates were higher in patients with DS and peaked at a younger age where the median age at diagnosis was 38 years in DS vs. 53 years in control patients.
• Incidence rates for type 1 diabetes mellitus were 0.44 in patients with DS vs. 0.13 in control patients.
• Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) rates were higher in patients with DS versus control patients in age-groups from 5 years up to 34 years.
• In patients with DS, peak mean BMI was higher at a younger age versus control patients.

• Obesity was associated with an increased incidence of T2DM. 

Thus, the study shows that the incidence of diabetes in patients with DS is higher and at a younger age than controls due to higher BMI. 

Aisha A. Aslam, R. Asaad Baksh, Sarah E. Pape, Andre Strydom, Martin C. Gulliford, Li F. Chan, GO-DS21 Consortium; for the GO-DS21 Consortium, Diabetes and Obesity in Down Syndrome Across the Lifespan: A Retrospective Cohort Study Using U.K. Electronic Health Records. Diabetes Care 2022; dc220482. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc22-0482