At the end of five years follow up, about 207 (58.4%) developed DKA with the overall incidence of 2.27 cases per 100 children per month (27.24 cases per 100 child-years) observation. The incidence rate of DKA in this study is higher than studies done in the US which were 8 per 100 person-years [3], in Sweden 3.2-3.6/100 patient-years [4] , the international society of pediatric and adolescent diabetes 2014 report 1–10% per patient per year [2] and Austria 8.4 to 18.4 per 100,000 per year [19]. Regarding cumulative incidence, this finding is consistent with studies done in north-western Nigeria which was 62.2% [10] and 55.5% in Iran [20]. However, this finding is much higher than studies done in the US which was 25.5% [21], 40.3% in Italy [22], 27% in New Zealand [23], 28% in Poland [24], 40% in southern Iraq [25]. This discrepancy might be due to differences in methodology, lifestyle, culture, economical status, access to health care facilities, and level of education of the general public.
Lack of appropriate patient (and family) education concerning the home self-management [26] may have contributed to a high incidence of DKA in Ethiopia. Thus, insufficient education and resources about self-monitoring and DKA prevention can have a great impact on DKA existence in many patients and contribute to most of the increased morbidity and premature mortality [27, 28]. Furthermore, poor access to health care facilities [29] in our country leads many patients to seek alternative treatments such as consulting traditional healers, using herbal remedies [30] prayers and rituals that encountered a delay in care which further complicating the disease process [31].
Children age <5 years were more likely to develop DKA compared to age >10 years old. This is consistent with other previous studies conducted in the US [21], Italy [22], Southern Iraq [25]. This might be the age group <5-year might be more dependent on their caregiver and more venerable to medication non-adherence. Also, this age group can encounter trouble for lifestyle modifications which are the backbone for preventing the occurrence of DKA such as adhere to a diet, exercise, and self-monitoring of blood glucose level. Also, in our study, children who have medication non-adherence were more likely to develop DKA as compared to children who adhere to medication. This finding is supported by other previous studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa [32], north India [33], Saudi Arabia [34], New Zealand [23], Southern Iraq [25]. This might be since DM is a chronic illness after taking medication symptoms may disappear for some time so; the children may not take their medication on time.
In this children having a history of inappropriate insulin storage at home were more likely to develop DKA. This might be most of the participants were from rural areas and may not have appropriate storage materials like refrigerators. Besides due to our poor diabetic education services [26] they may have inadequate knowledge about insulin storage during temperature variation and duration of storage. Lastly in this study, children who have preceding gastroenteritis and upper respiratory tract infection at the time of DKA development were more likely to develop DKA as compared to those who have not. This is supported by the study, in Nigeria [10], sub-Saharan Africa [32], Malaysia [35], north India [33], and Saudi Arabia [34]. This might be infection can cause high levels of counteracting hormones mainly cortisol and adrenaline which triggering an episode of DKA. When there is gastroenteritis there will be vomiting and diarrhea-causing dehydration and electrolyte imbalance. This leads to an increase in the stress hormone.
Limitations
Since the data were collected from medical records, patients' charts lost and incomplete data were found. These may affect the outcome of the study. Also, this study did not include the recurrence of diabetic ketoacidosis (trend) and the lack of some variables like parental factors that can't be addressed through card review