Reproductive disturbances among Saudi adolescent girls and young women with type 1 diabetes mellitus

AIM: To identify reproductive disturbances among adolescent girls and young women with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: This cross sectional study was conducted among 102 female with T1DM, (aged 13-29 years) who attended the Diabetes Clinic at Diabetes Treatment Center, Prince Sultan Military Medical City, Saudi Arabia between April 2015 to March 2016. Clinical history, anthropometric characteristics and reproductive disturbance were collected through a questionnaire. Among the studied patients, 15.7% (16/102) had polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Of these PCOS patients, 37.5% (6/16) had irregular menses, 6.3% (1/16) had Celiac disease, 37.5% (6/16) had Hashimoto thyroiditis and 18.7% (3/16) had acne. CONCLUSION: More than one fourth of the study population with T1DM experiencing an irregular menses. Adolescent girls and young women diagnosed with diabetes prior to menarche showed higher menstrual irregularity and a delay in the age of menarche.