Association of socio-demographic and anthropometric characteristics with the management and glycemic control in type 1 diabetic children from the province of El Jadida (Morocco)

Background: Diabetes is a real public health problem in children and adolescents because of its chronicity and the difficulty in the control of blood glucose levels at paediatric age. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the link of socio-demographic and anthropometric characteristics with the management and glycemic control in children with type1 diabetes (T1D). Materials and Methods: The study included a sample of 184 children with T1D of 15 years old or less. A structured questionnaire was used to collect information on socio-demographic status, characteristics and complications of the disease, diabetes management, diet, physical activity and therapeutic education of participants. Weight and height were measured and body mass index calculated. Results: The mean age of the patients surveyed was 8.49 ± 4.1 years; the majority (68.5%) was of school age, female (53.2%) and was from low socioeconomic level (83.2%). Only 20.1% of the patients had a good glycemic control. The low socioeconomic status and overweight or obesity were significantly more prevalent in children with poor compared to those with good glycemic control (P ≤ 0.001). Multivariate analysis revealed an association of poor glycemic control with the family history of diabetes (adjusted OR = 38.70, 95% CI: 11.61, 128.98) and the absence of therapeutic education (adjusted OR = 3.29, 95% CI: 1.006, 10.801). Conclusions: This study shows that diabetes is associated with overweight and obesity in children and that the quality of glycemic control is