Changes in frequency and severity of limited joint mobility in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus between 1976-78 and 1998.
OBJECTIVE
Limited joint mobility (LJM), the earliest clinically apparent long-term complication of type 1 diabetes mellitus, is a risk indicator for microvascular complications, and its appearance is primarily affected by long-term metabolic control. We hypothesized that the prevalence of LJM had decreased during the past 20 years.


METHODS
We examined 312 subjects with type 1 diabetes mellitus, aged 7 to 18 years, using the same examination method and criteria as in studies of 515 subjects in this age group carried out between 1976 and 1978 for whom primary data were available, including age, duration of diabetes, and LJM stage. Statistical analyses included exact chi(2) tests, independent sample t tests, and unconditional logistic regression.


RESULTS
There was a >4-fold reduction in frequency of LJM between 1976-78 and 1998 (31% vs 7%, P <.001), with a decrease in the proportion having moderate or severe LJM (35% vs 9%, P =.025).


CONCLUSIONS
These findings confirm the hypothesis that the prevalence of LJM has decreased, most likely the result of improved blood glucose control during the past 2 decades.
Infante
J R
JR
Department of Pediatrics, University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville, Florida, USA.
Rosenbloom
A L
AL
Silverstein
J H
JH
Garzarella
L
L
Pollock
B H
BH
D000293:Adolescent; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D002165:Camping; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000150:complications* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000517:prevention & control; D003925:Diabetic Angiopathies / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005431:Florida / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007592:Joint Diseases / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D016015:Logistic Models; D015995:Prevalence; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013997:Time Factors
D001786:Blood Glucose