Objective: To evaluate clinical and laboratory profiles of patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus in three public hospitals in São Paulo, Brazil, since type 1 diabetes mellitus is a chronic illness that occurs mainly in the pediatric age group in the Brazilian population.Methods: Cross-sectional study with patients followed up in reference centers in São José do Rio Preto (FAMERP), Campinas (UNICAMP) and São Paulo (Conjunto Hospitalar do Mandaqui). Data about gender, age, diabetes duration, daily insulin dose, number of daily insulin injections, and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA 1c ) were analyzed. Results:Two hundred and thirty-nine patients (131 females) were evaluated; mean age was 13.1±4.7 years and mean diabetes duration was 6.6±4.2 years. Daily insulin doses ranged from 0.1 to 1.78 units/kg/day (0.88±0.28), and 180 (74.7%) patients had two daily injections. HbA 1c ranged from 4.6 to 17.9% (10.0±2.3%). Conclusions:Although the hospitals included in this study are excellence centers for the follow-up of patients with diabetes in three municipalities in the state of São Paulo, one of the most developed states in Brazil, blood glucose control evaluated according to HbA 1c was not adequate. Findings confirm that, despite the efforts of all the professionals involved, great challenges still lie ahead.J Pediatr (Rio J). 2009;85(6):490-494 IntroduçãoO diabete melito tipo 1 (DMT1) é uma das doenças endócrinas mais sérias da infância e da adolescência. Sua incidência, que varia entre diferentes países e grupos ét-nicos, pode oscilar de 0,1 a 37,4/100.000 entre crianças de 0 a 14 anos 1 .O objetivo do tratamento do diabetes é alcançar equilíbrio metabólico e assegurar o bem-estar do paciente. As evidências mostram que um melhor controle da glicose sanguínea reduz o riso de complicações crônicas e está associado com uma melhor qualidade de vida 2 .

Although the hospitals included in this study are excellence centers for the follow-up of patients with diabetes in three municipalities in the state of São Paulo, one of the most developed states in Brazil, blood glucose control evaluated according to HbA1c was not adequate. Findings confirm that, despite the efforts of all the professionals involved, great challenges still lie ahead.