Clinical and socio‐demographic factors associated with diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization in adults with Type 1 diabetes

AIM: To identify the clinical and socio-demographic factors associated with hospitalization for diabetic ketoacidosis in adults with Type 1 diabetes. METHODS: We combined clinical and administrative health data from a large urban diabetes clinic to perform a data linkage study. We identified adults (aged ≥ 18 years old) with Type 1 diabetes and linked to hospital discharge abstracts to assess for diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization. The study period was between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2009, with all individuals living in the same geographic area. Multivariate logistic regression was used to identify potential predictors of diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization. RESULTS: We identified 255 individuals with a diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization and 1739 without a diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization. Mean (standard deviation) age was 40.0 (15.8) years, 51.7% were men and mean duration of diabetes was 17.8 (12.9) years. Diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization was associated with shorter duration of diabetes (odds ratio 0.96 per year; 95% confidence interval 0.95-0.98), gastroparesis (odds ratio 4.13; 95% confidence interval 1.82-9.35), psychiatric diagnosis (odds ratio 1.98; 95% confidence interval 1.22-3.19), and higher HbA1c (odds ratio 1.25 per 1% increase; 95% confidence interval 1.16-1.35). CONCLUSIONS: This study identifies specific clinical factors associated with diabetic ketoacidosis hospitalization in adults with Type 1 diabetes. This information can help to inform the detection of high-risk patients, for whom special attention and interventions may be warranted to prevent diabetic ketoacidosis.