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Article Type

Original Study

Abstract

Objective This work aimed to study puberty and its disorders - if any, in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) boys. Background T1D is a lifelong disease that may affect prepubertal boys. It is an autoimmune disease that destroys the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas, causing hypoinsulinemia. The effects of this disease on the different body systems and organs have received considerable attention from researchers and most of these are well known at present. Unfortunately, its effects on puberty, growth of sexual organs, and sexual maturation have not received such attention. Patients and methods A case-control study was carried out on 20 T1D boys, 14-18 years old, who were selected as the patient group. Another 20 healthy, age-matched volunteers were included as a control group. For both groups, the stage of sexual maturation - Tanner«SQ»s stage and hormonal profile - follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin, and total testosterone were measured and the growth parameters, including the weight, height, and BMI, were evaluated. Results The patients included in this study had poor glycemic control. T1D caused marked retardation of puberty as 25% of the boys were still sexually immature. Follicle-stimulating hormone, LH, and total testosterone were lower in the T1D boys compared with the controls (significantly in the former and latter and insignificant for LH). Prolactin was significantly lower in the diabetic group. T1D boys showed lower growth parameters (weight, height, and BMI) than the controls. Conclusion According to our results, T1D boys showed markedly delayed puberty and lower growth parameters compared with the controls.

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