SARS-CoV-2 infection may increase risk of prediabetes progression into diabetes

1. Patients with pre-diabetes who were hospitalized with COVID-19 had a greater risk of developing type-2 diabetes mellitus, compared to hospitalized pre-diabetic patients without COVID-19. 

Evidence Rating Level: 2 (Good)

Recent observations and case reports have suggested an increased risk of developing new-onset type-2 diabetes (T2D) following COVID-19 infection. Researchers aimed to determine the incidence of new-onset diabetes following COVID-19 infection for participants with preexisting prediabetes. Data were collected from medical records using the Montefiore Health System in Bronx, New York. Researchers compared 42,877 patients with COVID-19 and a history of pre-diabetes to a propensity-matched group of 9306 pre-diabetic patients without COVID-19. Two primary outcomes were assessed: the incidence of new-onset in-hospital DM and new-onset persistent DM at a 5-month follow-up. Compared to hospitalized patients without COVID-19, hospitalized patients with COVID-19 had a greater incidence of new-onset DM (21.9% vs 6.02%, p<0.001) and persistent DM (14.75% vs 7.51%, p<0.001). The same trend was not observed for non-hospitalized patients. Researchers postulate that the physical and mental stress of hospitalization, as well as the steroids used to treat severe COVID-19 infections, may contribute to the development of DM. This study demonstrates that patients with pre-diabetes who are hospitalized for COVID-19 may benefit from more careful surveillance of their glycemic control.

Click to read the study in BMJ

Image: PD

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