Family Characteristics and Life Events Before the Onset of Autoimmune Type 1 Diabetes in Young Adults
A nationwide study
- Bengt Littorin, MD1,
- Göran Sundkvist, MD, PHD2,
- Lennarth Nyström, BA, PHD3,
- Anita Carlson, PHD5,
- Mona Landin-Olsson, MD, PHD7,
- Jan Östman, MD, PHD6,
- Hans J. Arnqvist, MD, PHD8,
- Elisabeth Björk, MD, PHD10,
- Göran Blohmé, MD, PHD9,
- Jan Bolinder, MD, PHD6,
- Jan W. Eriksson, MD, PHD4,
- Bengt Scherstén, MD, PHD1 and
- Lars Wibell, MD, PHD10
- 1Community Health Sciences
- 2Endocrinology, Malmö University Hospital, Malmö
- 3Epidemiology Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University
- 4Department of Medicine, University Hospital, Umeå
- 5Diabetes Education and Research Center (DERC), Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm
- 6Department of Internal Medicine, Huddinge Hospital, Huddinge
- 7Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital of Lund, Lund
- 8Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Linköping, Linköping
- 9Department of Internal Medicine, Sahlgrenska University Hospital, University of Göteborg, Göteborg
- 10Department of Medicine, University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden
Abstract
OBJECTIVE—To elucidate whether family characteristics and stressful life events were associated with onset of autoimmune type 1 diabetes in young adults.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS—This investigation was based on a nationwide study (Diabetes Incidence Study in Sweden) of newly diagnosed patients aged 15–34 years. Patients clinically classified as type 1 diabetic with antibodies to islet cells and/or to GAD65 were compared with age- and sex-matched control subjects via questionnaire. The questionnaire covered diabetes heredity, social environment, educational level, and life events experienced during the 12 months before diagnosis.
RESULTS—The rate of response was 82% for the diabetic patients and 65% for the control subjects. Questionnaires from 349 diabetic patients and 979 control subjects were considered. Diabetes in relatives was more frequent in the patients (odds ratio [OR]2.6) who were born in Sweden and whose mothers were of Swedish origin. No major stress factors were detected in the diabetic patients; however, in comparison with the control subjects, the diabetic patients had experienced fewer conflicts with their parents and had less often broken contacts with friends.
CONCLUSIONS—Young adults with recent-onset type 1 diabetes were more exposed to heredity for diabetes, but no major prediabetic stress factors were detected. Our study does not directly support the concept that psychosocial stressful life events are involved in the development of autoimmune type 1 diabetes in young adults.
- DISS, Diabetes Incidence Study in Sweden
- GADA, GAD antibodies
- ICA, islet cell antibodies
- JDF, Juvenile Diabetes Foundation
- LES, Life Event Scale
- OR, odds ratio
- W/H, waist-to-hip
Footnotes
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Address correspondence and reprint requests to Bengt Littorin, Södervärn Primary Health Care Center, Ahlmansgatan 12, S-214 27 Malmö, Sweden. E-mail: bengt.littorin{at}skane.se.
Received for publication 28 September 2000 and accepted in revised form 2 March 2001.
A.C. is deceased.
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