Maternal Autoimmune Disease and Childhood‐Onset Type 1 Diabetes: A Nationwide Population‐Based Nested Case‐Control Study
Authors' conclusion
Offspring of mothers diagnosed with autoimmune disease, notably T1DM, autoimmune thyroiditis, and rheumatoid arthritis, may indeed have a heightened likelihood of developing T1DM. These findings underscore the importance of targeted screening programs for T1DM in children of affected mothers.
Study context
- Population
- Newborns born 2004–2014 (Maternal and Child Health Database (MCHD) and National Health Insurance Research Database (NHIRD)), followed to end of 2020; cases: children <17 years with T1D (Catastrophic Illness Registry), controls 1:10 matched by birth date and sex1,273 T1D cases
- Participants
- 2,036,051 newborns
- Comparison
- Offspring of mothers with vs without autoimmune disease
- Outcome
- Childhood-onset T1D
Methodological detailsnationwide, 1:10 controls matched by birth date and sex
- Nationwide
- 1:10 controls matched by birth date and sex
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Childhood-onset T1D in offspring of mothers with an autoimmune disease
Higher risk of T1D in offspring of mothers with an autoimmune disease, aOR
1.95 (1.45-2.63), p < 0.001 (95% CI)
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Childhood-onset T1D in offspring, by individual maternal autoimmune disease
- Maternal T1DM, aOR
- 6.81 (2.30-20.16), p < 0.001 (95% CI)
- Maternal Hashimoto thyroiditis, aOR
- 3.75 (1.85-7.60), p < 0.001 (95% CI)
- Maternal rheumatoid arthritis, aOR
- 2.49 (1.08-5.77), p = 0.033 (95% CI)
- Maternal Graves' disease, aOR
- 1.85 (1.14-2.99), p = 0.013 (95% CI)
- Each significantly increased the risk of T1D in the children
Original publication
Maternal Autoimmune Disease and Childhood‐Onset Type 1 Diabetes: A Nationwide Population‐Based Nested Case‐Control Study. Pediatr Diabetes. Published 20 January 2026. doi:10.
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