Clinical course of adolescents with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A nationwide cohort study in Taiwan

AIMS/INTRODUCTION: The global incidence of adolescents with type 2 diabetes mellitus is increasing. This cohort study was conducted aiming to describe the characteristics, drug‐use condition, and long‐term outcomes of adolescents with type 2 diabetes mellitus. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two thousand seven hundred fifty‐five newly diagnosed adolescents with type 2 diabetes mellitus (using ICD‐9‐CM: 250.x and having ≥3 clinic visits) were identified from the national health insurance dataset during 2000–2014. Treatments were classified into four groups: metformin, sulfonylurea (SU), metformin plus SU, and insulin with or without oral antidiabetic drugs. The multiple Cox regression model was used to compare the risks of mortality and hospitalization among these four groups. RESULTS: The mean follow‐up period was 5.4 years. After 1 year of antidiabetic treatment, they gradually needed intensified therapy, and at 3 years, half of them showed treatment failure. The mortality rate was 2.08 per 1,000 person‐years. Respiratory diseases (36.2%) and dysglycemia (16.4%) were the most common causes of hospitalization among these adolescents. Compared with persons taking metformin plus SU, metformin users were associated with a lower risk of all‐cause hospitalization [0.82 (0.67–0.99)]; insulin users were associated with a higher risk of dysglycemia [4.38 (2.14–8.96)], cancer [3.76 (1.39–10.1)], and respiratory hospitalization [1.66 (1.14–2.41)]; and SU users were associated with a higher risk of hospitalization for respiratory diseases [1.91 (1.13–3.23)]. CONCLUSIONS: This nationwide cohort study demonstrated that adolescents with type 2 diabetes mellitus were prone to treatment failure. Furthermore, respiratory diseases and dysglycemia were the most common causes of hospitalization.