Severe hypertriglyceridemia at new onset type 1 diabetes mellitus

Severe hypertriglyceridemia (HTG) as well as diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) are complications of type 1 diabetes (T1DM). HTG is an exceedingly rare complication in the pediatric population and herein we report a case of HTG at new-onset T1DM in DKA and discuss management and potential complications.

An 11-year-old previously well patient with a history of fatigue and weight loss presented with: glucose >600 mg/dL, venous blood gas: pH 7.26, pCO2 20 mmHg, PO2 101 mmHg and base deficit 13 with triglyceride level 3573 mg/dL. An insulin drip was continued past criteria for discontinuation to facilitate lipoprotein lipase-based triglyceride metabolism.

Lipemia secondary to severe HTG, though exceedingly rare, may exist in new onset T1DM with DKA. Complicating the diagnosis is the possibility of an analytical error from lipemia causing incongruence in diagnostic criteria. Clinicians should rely on clinical criteria for management and should consider HTG if laboratory data is inconsistent with the clinical picture.