Epidemiology of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus in Mauritius

Abstract

There is increasing concern for the rising incidence of Type 1 Diabetes mellitus worldwide. In Mauritius, there is no official data on the incidence of this disease. On the other hand, the recent creation of a two non-governmental organizations in less than five years to support patients calls for a situational analysis of the disease. Therefore, this research work has been designed with the aim to appraise the epidemiology of Type 1 Diabetes mellitus in Mauritius. Epidemiological data of all Type 1 diabetic patients ≤14 years of age was collected by means of a questionnaire comprising mainly of closed ended questions. This questionnaire was subject to a prior pilot study. Ethical clearance was obtained from the Ethics Committee of the local health authority. The age-standardized average incidence, for the period under scrutiny, was 4.94/100000/year. In boys and girls, it is 4.59 and 6.63/100000/year respectively. Referring to age of onset, it was observed that in male patients, the highest peak was observed at the age of 7 and 12 years whereas in female cases, the highest peak was observed at the age of 10 years. The median age at diagnosis for male and female patients was 8.02 and 10.0 years respectively. Being given the high incidence of T1D in Mauritius and the global rising trend, the surveillance of this disease needs to be addressed.