Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Comparison of healthcare systems often helps highlight areas of concern.

Design: In a short survey, we evaluated severity of DKA at presentation with diabetes by comparing clinical and biochemical data from clinic cohorts from paediatric diabetes units in Delhi, India and Manchester, UK.

Results: In the Delhi vs UK groups; there were no significant differences in pH (7.2 (S.D. 0.2) vs 7.2 (0.1)), blood glucose concentrations (28.8 (5.9) vs 26.7 (9.8) mmol/l) or HbA1c levels (10.4 (2.2) vs 10.4 (1.7)%) at diagnosis of DKA. However rate of readmission with DKA was greater (60.0 versus 10.7%).

Conclusions: Our data suggest a similar length of prodrome prior to first presentation with DKA between India and the UK and further highlights the need for DKA specific awareness campaigns in both countries.