[Islet-cell antibodies and organ-specific antibodies in diabetic children and adolescents. Relationship with age, age at onset, duration of diabetes, residual insulin secretion and retinopathy (author's transl)]

Abstract

The prevalence of islet-cell antibodies and of 10 organ-specific auto-antibodies was determined in 71 diabetic children and adolescents whose mean duration of diabetes was 4 1/2 years. Forty-four p. cent of the patients had autoantibodies; 15% had islet-cell antibodies and 31% had organ specific antibodies. The prevalence of antinuclear, gastric parietal cell and striated muscle antibodies was significantly higher in diabetics than in controls. There was no relationship between prevalence of antibodies and age of the diabetics nor age at the onset of the disease. The frequency of circulating islet-cell antibodies tended to decrease with the duration of diabetes while organ-specific antibodies remained stable. The study failed to demonstrate any correlation between measurable C-peptide and the presence of autoantibodies. Diabetic retinopathy, diagnosed by fluorescein angiography, was not related to the presence of autoantibodies.