The Prevalence of Hypophosphatemia and its Associated Risk Factors in Diabetic Ketoacidosis Patients.

Objective: We aimed to study the prevalence of hypophosphatemia and its associated risk factors in Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) patients in the pediatric population.

Methodology: We included 65 subjects aged 7 months to 18 years old who were admitted to Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) for DKA. Patients' socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, and biochemical examinations from their first admission for DKA were analyzed. The diagnosis of DKA was based on the International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD) criteria. Multiple logistic regression models examined associations between different variables and hypophosphatemia.

Result: The prevalence of hypophosphatemia in DKA was highest on day 1, at 70.8%, with a mean age of 11 on presentation. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed plasma bicarbonate at day 3 [adjusted odds ratio (OR) 1.2, with a p-value of 0.027] and baseline hemoglobin [adjusted OR 0.62, with p-value 0.009] were significantly associated with hypophosphatemia during DKA.

Conclusion: The prevalence of hypophosphatemia in DKA pediatric patients admitted to our center was highest on day 1 of admission. There were many factors associated with hypophosphatemia from simple logistic regression analysis. However, our final model revealed that plasma bicarbonate on day 3 and baseline Hb were the only significant risk factors for hypophosphatemia in DKA patients in the pediatric population.