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Objective The purpose of our study was to determine the association of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and the risk of herpes zoster (HZ). Methods In this cohort study, we selected 4736 patients with T1DM registered in the Catastrophic Illness Patient Database who received insulin therapy before 2003 and 18944 participants without DM who were selected by frequency matched based on sex and age. Cox proportional hazard regression analysis was used to measure the hazard ratios (HRs) of HZ in the T1DM group compared with that in the non-T1DM group. Results Cox proportional hazard regression analysis showed that the adjusted HR of HZ was 2.38 times higher for patients in the T1DM group (95% CI = 1.77–3.19) than for those in the non-T1DM group. According to diabetes severity, mild and serious T1DM patients were associated with a higher risk of HZ (adjusted HR = 2.26, 95% CI = 1.67–3.05; and adjusted HR = 5.08, 95% CI = 2.66–9.71, respectively) than subjects without T1DM. Conclusion Patients with T1DM are at a higher risk of HZ than those without T1DM.

Objective Diabetes is a common diseases and a major problem worldwide. Diabetic osteopathy might be elevated in diabetic patients and is usually caused by bone fracture. Several diabetes medications, such as thiazolidinediones (TZDs), could lead to increased risks of fracture. Methods We used the nationwide database to identified 32466 patients who had developed type 2 diabetes from 2000 to 2010 as the diabetic cohort and, from that group, we selected 3427 diabetic patients who had developed bone fracture to survey the possible risk factors, includng commonly used diabetes medication. Results We found that TZDs might present increased risks for fracture in patients who used it for an extended period (7 to 730 days before the index date), especially in female patients younger than 64 years old, for whom the risk was elevated from a 1.74- to a 2.58-fold odds ratio. Conclusions We recommend that clinics follow up with non-osteoporotic female patients younger than 64 years old who are using TZDs, to avoid the associated risks of fracture.