Plasma Apolipoprotein C-III Levels in Children with Type I Diabetes

The serum concentrations of apolipoproteins C-III, B, and A-I were determined in children with type I diabetes mellitus to establish whether they correlated with the level of glycosylated hemoglobin (Hb A1) and to determine whether these values differ between diabetic children and a population of normal children. Triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and apolipoprotein (Apo) levels were studied in 95 children with type I diabetes; 51 of the children were attending a diabetes clinic and 44 were attending a diabetes summer camp. The level of Hb A1 correlated with Apo C-III (P less than .001) and TC (P less than .001) values in the clinic group, but not with Apo A-I or TG levels in either group. The Apo C-III level was higher in both groups of diabetic children (8.0 +/- 0.5 and 9.5 +/- 0.4 mg/dl) (P less than .01) than in normal subjects (6.1 +/- 0.2 mg/dl). We conclude that the Apo C-III level tends to be higher in diabetics than in normal subjects, even in the normotriglyceridemic camp group. The Apo C-III level correlated with both the TC level and Hb A1, suggesting that Apo C-III determinations in type I diabetic patients may permit early identification of atherosclerotic risk.