title: Age at diagnosis, gender, and metabolic control in children with type 1 diabetes.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine whether age at diagnosis and gender affect early metabolic control in children with type 1 diabetes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Data on age at diagnosis, gender, pubertal status, and metabolic control were gathered by a retrospective chart review of children diagnosed between 1992 and 2005. Mean hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) values were compared at five time points: at diagnosis and at 6, 12, 24, and 36 months after diagnosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At diagnosis, girls aged 6-12 years presented with significantly higher HbA1c levels than girls diagnosed at older or younger ages. Their HbA1c at diagnosis was also significantly higher than that in boys of the same age. There was no gender difference among children diagnosed at ages 0-5 or 13+ yr. At 6 months after diagnosis, only age at diagnosis was associated with metabolic control, with children diagnosed when older presenting with lower HbA1c levels. At 12, 24, and 36 months after diagnosis, there were no significant effects of age at diagnosis or gender on glycemic status.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  At initial diagnosis, girls in the 6-12 age group presented with higher HbA1c levels compared with boys and girls of other age groups. Although endocrine changes associated with puberty may partly explain the findings, more investigation to elucidate mechanisms accounting for the interaction of age and gender with glycemic status is needed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY 10029, USA.
authors.forename: Carl J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Hochhauser
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rapaport
authors.forename: Eyal
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Shemesh
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Schmeidler
authors.forename: Claude M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Chemtob