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Aims: Islet autoantibody screening of infants and young children in the Northern Hemisphere, together with semi-annual metabolic monitoring, is associated with a lower risk of ketoacidosis (DKA) and improved glucose control after diagnosis of clinical (stage 3) type 1 diabetes (T1D). We aimed to determine if similar benefits applied to older Australians and New Zealanders monitored less rigorously., Methods: DKA occurrence and metabolic control were compared between T1D relatives screened and monitored for T1D and unscreened individuals diagnosed in the general population, ascertained from the Australasian Diabetes Data Network., Results: Between 2005 and 2019, 17,105 relatives (mean (SD) age 15.7 (10.8) years; 52% female) were screened for autoantibodies against insulin, glutamic acid decarboxylase, and insulinoma-associated protein 2. Of these, 652 screened positive to a single and 306 to multiple autoantibody specificities, of whom 201 and 215, respectively, underwent metabolic monitoring. Of 178 relatives diagnosed with stage 3 T1D, 9 (5%) had DKA, 7 of whom had not undertaken metabolic monitoring. The frequency of DKA in the general population was 31%. After correction for age, sex and T1D family history, the frequency of DKA in screened relatives was >80% lower than in the general population. HbA1c and insulin requirements following diagnosis were also lower in screened relatives, consistent with greater beta cell reserve., Conclusions: T1D autoantibody screening and metabolic monitoring of older children and young adults in Australia and New Zealand, by enabling pre-clinical diagnosis when beta cell reserve is greater, confers protection from DKA. These clinical benefits support ongoing efforts to increase screening activity in the region and should facilitate the application of emerging immunotherapies., (© 2022 The Authors. Pediatric Diabetes published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) is a rare genetic disorder characterised by neurodevelopmental delays, hyperphagia, difficulties with social communication and challenging behaviours. Individuals require intensive supervision from caregivers which may negatively affect caregiver quality of life. This study used data collected in the Australasian PWS Registry (n = 50, mean age 11.2 years) to evaluate associations between child behaviours and caregiver mental well-being. Symptoms of sleep-related breathing disorder, child depression and social difficulties were associated with poorer caregiver mental and physical well-being. Growth hormone therapy use was associated with better caregiver mental and physical well-being. Optimising management of problematic behaviours and sleep disturbances have the potential to support caregivers who are the most vital network of support for individuals affected by PWS., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Individuals with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) often have excessive daytime sleepiness and emotional/behavioral disturbances. The objective of this study was to examine whether daytime sleepiness was associated with these emotional/behavioral problems, independent of nighttime sleep-disordered breathing, or the duration of sleep. Caregivers of individuals with PWS (aged 3 to 25 years) completed the Pediatric Sleep Questionnaire (PSQ), Epworth Sleepiness Scale for Children and Adolescents (ESS-CHAD), and the parent version of the Developmental Behavior Checklist (DBC-P). Sleep adequacy was adjusted for age by computing sleep duration against age-specific recommendations. The associations between ESS-CHAD and the total DBC and its subscale scores were evaluated by linear regression, adjusted for sleep-related breathing difficulties, sleep adequacy, and body mass index (BMI). There were 54 responses for individuals with PWS (including 22 males) aged 4.4-24.0 (mean 12.5) years. Daytime sleepiness predicted a substantial proportion of the variance in total DBC-P scores in the unadjusted model (28%; β = 0.028; p < 0.001) and when adjusted for sleep adequacy, BMI, and sleep-related breathing difficulties (29%; β = 0.023; p = 0.007). This relationship was not moderated by BMI Z-scores, but the relationship was more prominent for children younger than 12 years than for children older than 12 years.Conclusions: These findings provide preliminary novel evidence that daytime sleepiness may drive the expression of emotional/behavioral disturbances, and should be explored as a potential modifiable risk factor for these disturbances in PWS, particularly pre-adolescent children., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Aim: In children with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), growth hormone (GH) improves height and body composition; however, may be associated with worsening sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). Some studies have reported less SDB after GH initiation, but follow-up with polysomnography is still advised in most clinical guidelines., Methods: This retrospective, multicentre study, included children with PWS treated with GH at seven PWS treatment centres in Australia over the last 18 years. A paired analysis comparing polysomnographic measures of central and obstructive SDB in the same child, before and after GH initiation was performed with Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The proportion of children who developed moderate/severe obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) was calculated with their binomial confidence intervals., Results: We included 112 patients with available paired data. The median age at start of GH was 1.9 years (range 0.1-13.5 years). Median obstructive apnoea hypopnoea index (AHI) at baseline was 0.43/h (range 0-32.9); 35% had an obstructive AHI above 1.0/h. Follow-up polysomnography within 2 years after the start of GH was available in 94 children who did not receive OSA treatment. After GH initiation, there was no change in central AHI. The median obstructive AHI did not increase significantly (P = 0.13), but 12 children (13%, CI 95% 7-21%) developed moderate/severe OSA, with clinical management implications., Conclusions: Our findings of a worsening of OSA severity in 13% of children with PWS support current advice to perform polysomnography after GH initiation. Early identification of worsening OSA may prevent severe sequelae in a subgroup of children., (© 2021 The Authors. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Paediatrics and Child Health Division (The Royal Australasian College of Physicians).)

Platelet-neutrophil aggregates (PNAs) facilitate neutrophil activation and migration and could underpin the recruitment of neutrophils to the pancreas during type 1 diabetes (T1D) pathogenesis. PNAs, measured by flow cytometry, were significantly elevated in the circulation of autoantibody-positive (Aab+) children and new-onset T1D children, as well as in pre-T1D (at 4 weeks and 10-12 weeks) and T1D-onset NOD mice, compared with relevant controls, and PNAs were characterized by activated P-selectin+ platelets. PNAs were similarly increased in pre-T1D and T1D-onset NOD isolated islets/insulitis, and immunofluorescence staining revealed increased islet-associated neutrophil extracellular trap (NET) products (myeloperoxidase [MPO] and citrullinated histones [CitH3]) in NOD pancreata. In vitro, cell-free histones and NETs induced islet cell damage, which was prevented by the small polyanionic drug methyl cellobiose sulfate (mCBS) that binds to histones and neutralizes their pathological effects. Elevated circulating PNAs could, therefore, act as an innate immune and pathogenic biomarker of T1D autoimmunity. Platelet hyperreactivity within PNAs appears to represent a previously unrecognized hematological abnormality that precedes T1D onset. In summary, PNAs could contribute to the pathogenesis of T1D and potentially function as a pre-T1D diagnostic.