A jump in severe ketoacidosis presentations among children with new-onset type 1 diabetes is likely because families have been trying to avoid hospitals during the pandemic, researchers say.

Although limited to the experience of a single NSW hospital, the findings are likely to be nationally representative and mirror similar trends seen in the US, Italy and Germany, they say.

In an observational study, clinicians at the John Hunter Children’s Hospital in Newcastle compared rates of severe diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) presentations in children and adolescents between March and May to the same period in the previous five years.

The frequency of severe DKA presentations jumped from around 5% of cases in the pre-pandemic years to 45% during this year’s period of COVID-19 restrictions.