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Lower cardiorespiratory fitness in children with Type 1 diabetes
B K Williams1, K J Guelfi, T W Jones
1School of Paediatrics and Child Health, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, WA, Australia.
Aims:
The present study aimed to compare cardiorespiratory fitness levels in children with and without Type 1 diabetes. In addition, the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and a range of physical and clinical factors was investigated.
Methods:
Eighty-eight children with Type 1 diabetes aged 5-14 years completed a submaximal step test of cardiorespiratory fitness. Sixty-two of these children were successfully matched to control subjects without diabetes based on age, sex and anthropometrics for comparison. In addition, the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and a range of physical and clinical variables was assessed in the children with diabetes.
Results:
The heart rate response to exercise was higher in children with Type 1 diabetes, indicating reduced cardiorespiratory fitness levels compared with control subjects. Both gender and glycaemic control (HbA(1c) ) were significantly associated with cardiorespiratory fitness, with female sex and poorer glycaemic control associated with reduced fitness.
Conclusions:
Future research should investigate whether the reduced fitness in children with Type 1 diabetes is attributable to lower physical activity levels, or physiological changes resulting from the diabetes pathology itself.
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