Limited Joint Mobility in 77 Children with Type I Diabetes Mellitus and Correlation to Other Diabetic Complications

Abstract: We investigated limited joint mobility in 77 patients with type I diabetes mellitus. The patients were also assesed for neuropathy, retinopathy and pulmonary complications. The prevalence of limited joint mobility was 47%. Skin changes were present in 87 % of patients with diabetes of more than 5 years ’ duration. No relationship was found between limited joint mobility and metabolic control, but there was a very strong correlation between limited joint mobility and other diabetic complications such as neuropathy, nephropathy and retinopathy. We did not find any differences in the pulmonary function tests of patients with and without limited joint mobility. We concluded that limited joint mobility was a simple and reliable indicator of chronic microangiopathic diabetic complications. Key Words: Diabetes mellitus type I, limited joint mobility