Dyslipidaemia in Nigerian Children and Adolescents with Diabetes Mellitus: Prevalence and Associated Risk Factors

Background: Dyslipidaemia is prevalent in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes and can worsen the presentation of chronic complications such as nephropathy, retinopathy, and neuropathy. The aim of this study is to determine the frequency of dyslipidaemia in children living with diabetes followed up at a paediatric endocrine clinic in southern Nigeria and to identify associations with demographic and clinical characteristics. Methods: The study is a cross-sectional, descriptive study of 22 children with diabetes followed up in a tertiary health care facility in southern Nigeria. Demographic data were retrieved from case files, and fasting lipid profile and HbA1c levels were determined for all subjects. Lipid abnormalities were defined based on the Expert Panel on Integrated Guidelines for Cardiovascular Health Risk Reduction in Children and Adolescents. Results: Twenty-two subjects aged 7–18 years were studied (mean age: 14.94 ± 3.59 years). There were 12 (54.5%) females. Both genders were comparable regarding age (p = 0.95). Mean duration of diabetes was 3.37 ± 2.38 years. Prevalence of lipid abnormalities include: hypertriglyceridaemia (86.4%), hypercholesterolemia (22.7%), abnormal HDL-C (36.4%), high LDL-C (13.6%), and non-HDL-C (22.7%). Hypercholesterolaemia was significantly higher in females (p = 0.02), and prevalence of hypertriglyceridaemia was higher in subjects ≥12 years (p = 0.019). There was no statistically significant difference in mean levels of various lipids between males and females. Six (27.3%) subjects had more than one lipid abnormality. There was no statistically significant association of lipid abnormalities with age, sex, weight category, and HbA1c level. Conclusion: The commonest lipid abnormality was hypertriglyceridaemia. About a quarter of the subjects had more than 1 lipid abnormality. Programs should therefore be targeted at improved control of glycemia and lipid levels to delay and prevent chronic complications.