PATTERNS OF HOSPITAL USE, FAMILY HISTORY AND COEXISTING CONDITIONS AMONG URBAN AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND HISPANIC-AMERICAN CHILDREN WITH INSULIN-DEPENDENT DIABETES-MELLITUS

Little information is available about insulin-dependent diabetes melli tus (IDDM) when it occurs among US minorities. The incidence of IDDM a mong African-American and Hispanic children <18 years of age was deter mined in the city of Chicago. Hospital records were used as the primar y source of cases, and a small amount of additional data was collected from the medical charts. Cases were drawn from records at 37 hospital s in Cook County, IL. African-American and Hispanic patients using ins ulin, residing in the city of Chicago, and <18-years-old at onset were registered. Three secondary sources were used and overall ascertainme nt was estimated at 86%. There were 413 new cases during the 6-year in terval 1985 through 1990. The age-standardized incidence of IDDM was 1 3.2/100 000 (95% confidence interval (C.I.) 11.8-14.8) among African-A mericans and 10.8/100 000 (95%, C.I. 9.5-12.3) among Hispanics. Hospit al use differed between African-Americans and Hispanics, presumably ba sed on geographic, cultural and financial factors. Diabetes among the first degree relatives of children from both ethnic groups was common, and the most frequently listed co-morbid conditions were asthma and o besity. The risk for IDDM in Chicago is among the highest for both Afr ican-origin and Hispanic children worldwide. The prevalence of asthma and obesity parallels the high prevalence of these conditions among no n-diabetic children in Chicago. The ongoing epidemic of non-insulin-de pendent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) among African-Americans and US Hispa nics is likely to be the reason for the large number of minority IDDM patients who have a first-degree relative with diabetes.