The effect of war and siege on children with diabetes admitted to ayder comprehensive specialized hospital in mekelle, tigray, ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

The armed conflict in Tigray, which spanned from November 2020 to November 2022, along with the accompanying siege, led to the near-total collapse of Tigray’s healthcare system. Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus, the most common chronic condition in children, requires significant lifestyle adjustments, including daily insulin injections, regular glucose monitoring, and dietary modifications; all of which are severely impacted by war and siege. This study compared Type 1 diabetes care for children at the Ayder Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Tigray, during the conflict and siege period with that of the pre-war period. We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional survey, analyzing data from September 2019 to August 2020 (pre-war period) and comparing it with data from September 2021 to August 2022 (war and siege period). Descriptive statistics, including frequencies and percentages, were employed, and Pearson’s or Spearman’s correlation analyses were used to evaluate correlations where appropriate. We identified 143 pediatric patients admitted (56 during the pre-war period and 87 during the war and siege period), with a mean age of 109 months in both periods. During the war and siege, a higher proportion of diabetes admissions were due to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) (90%) compared to the pre-war period (75%). In the pre-war period, the most common trigger for DKA was infections (35%), while in the war and siege period, it shifted to malnutrition (47%), infections (46%), lack of access to healthcare facilities (31%), and running out of medicines (24%). Complications such as death, renal failure, cerebral edema, and shock were more prevalent during the war and siege periods. The case fatality rate was significantly higher during the war and siege (9%) compared to the pre-war period (0%), correlating strongly with the severity of DKA, the degree of hypokalemia, the presence of complications, and admission during the war and siege. Our study showed the negative impact of war and siege on diabetes care in children demonstrating a high rate of DKA admissions with increased severity, complications, malnutrition, and case fatality rates. People with diabetes especially type 1 deserve great attention during such a crisis as the lack of insulin could lead to severe complications including death.