Diabetes in Hispanic American Youth
Prevalence, incidence, demographics, and clinical characteristics: the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study
Jean M. Lawrence , SCD, MPH, MSSA 1 ,
Elizabeth J. Mayer-Davis , PHD 2 3 ,
Kristi Reynolds , PHD, MPH 1 ,
Jennifer Beyer , MS 4 ,
David J. Pettitt , MD 5 ,
Ralph B. D'Agostino, Jr. , PHD 4 ,
Santica M. Marcovina , PHD, SCD 6 ,
Giuseppina Imperatore , MD, PHD 7 ,
Richard F. Hamman , MD, DRPH 8 and
for the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study Group
1 Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena, California
2 Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Global Public Health and School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
3 Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
4 Department of Public Health Sciences, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
5 Sansum Diabetes Research Institute, Santa Barbara, California
6 Department of Medicine, Northwest Lipid Research Laboratories, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
7 Division of Diabetes Translation, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia
8 Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics, University of Colorado Denver, Denver, Colorado
Corresponding author: Jean M. Lawrence, jean.m.lawrence{at}kp.org
Abstract
OBJECTIVE —To report the 2001 prevalence and 2002–2005 incidence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in Hispanic American youth and to describe
the demographic, clinical, and behavioral characteristics of these youth.
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS —Data from the SEARCH for Diabetes in Youth Study, a population-based multicenter observational study of youth aged 0–19 years
with physician-diagnosed diabetes, were used to estimate the prevalence and incidence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Information
obtained by questionnaire, physical examination, and blood and urine collection was analyzed to describe the characteristics
of youth who completed a study visit.
RESULTS —Among Hispanic American youth, type 1 diabetes was more prevalent than type 2 diabetes, including in youth aged 10–19 years.
There were no significant sex differences in type 1 or type 2 diabetes prevalence. The incidence of type 2 diabetes for female
subjects aged 10–14 years was twice that of male subjects ( P < 0.005), while among youth aged 15–19 years the incidence of type 2 diabetes exceeded that of type 1 diabetes for female
subjects ( P < 0.05) but not for male subjects. Poor glycemic control, defined as A1C ≥9.5%, as well as high LDL cholesterol and triglycerides
were common among youth aged ≥15 years with either type of diabetes. Forty-four percent of youth with type 1 diabetes were
overweight or obese.
CONCLUSIONS —Factors such as poor glycemic control, elevated lipids, and a high prevalence of overweight and obesity may put Hispanic
youth with type 1 and type 2 diabetes at risk for future diabetes-related complications.
Footnotes
The contents of this report are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views
of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
Readers may use this article as long as the work is properly cited, the use is educational and not for profit, and the work
is not altered. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ for details.
DIABETES CARE...

Diabetes in Hispanic American Youth

10.2337/dc09-S204