Ten-year incidence (1981–1990) of insulin-dependent diabetes in the 0–29-year-old age group in Benghazi, Libya

Further evidence for the rising incidence of childhood Type 1 diabetes in Kuwait

“…In the present study, the annual incidence of 20.1 per 100 000 children aged ≤ 14 years indicates a high incidence in Kuwait similar to those reported from more developed countries such as The Netherlands [11], Northern Ireland [3] and Australia [12]. Compared with other Arab countries, incidence rates per 100 000 in Kuwait are higher than those reported from Libya, 7 [13], Sudan, 10.1 [14], Algeria, 8.2 [15], Sultanate of Oman, 2.45–2.62 [16], Saudi Arabia, 12.3 [17] and Jordan, 2.8–3.6 [18].…”

Absence of Seasonal Variation in the Occurrence of IDDM. A study from southern India

“…Although the EURODIAB study showed that seasonality was present in almost all populations across Europe, interestingly there was a lack of seasonality in high-risk populations in Scandinavian countries (1). A study from Libya, although it had more cases during cooler months, failed to show a significant difference in seasonality (5). Is this true of low-risk populations?…”

“…Similarly, a study from the Liguria region in Italy, with a high incidence of IDDM, also reported lack of significant differences in seasonal pattern, probably explained by the fact that there are many different influences unrelated to the initial trigger of the disease (4). Patients with severe nephropathies, including nephrosis, were excluded to avoid nonspecific influences on the lipoprotein metabolism (5). A study from Libya, although it had more cases during cooler months, failed to show a significant difference in seasonality (5).…”

“…Although the reason for the discrepancy between these studies is unclear, differences in subjects examined or in the methodology may account for them; that is, the estimation of age at onset of NIDDM was the time of the first symptoms of NIDDM or the time of first detection of glucosuria by Fujisawa et al (2), but it was not shown by Awata et al (1). To clarify this point, we studied the frequency of this mutation by restrictionenzyme digestion with Mval (3,5), the age at onset of NIDDM based on the results of a 75-g oral glucose tolerance test with World Health Organization diagnostic criteria (6), the current BMI, and the maximal BMI in 368 Japanese NIDDM subjects (mean age 54.6 ± 9 . 1 years; BMI 22.2 ± 3.3 kg/m 2 ) and 200 nondiabetic subjects (mean age 48.3 ± 9.6 years; BMI 22.0 ± 1 .…”

“…1 years; BMI 22.2 ± 3.3 kg/m 2 ) and 200 nondiabetic subjects (mean age 48.3 ± 9.6 years; BMI 22.0 ± 1 . Among obese Japanese women, this mu-tation is associated with abdominal and visceral fat deposition (5), which may in turn result in insulin resistance and the earlier onset of NIDDM. There was no significant difference between NIDDM subjects and nondiabetic subjects in the distribution of the (2).…”