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WCM-Q Grand Rounds discusses childhood diabetes

Professor Khalid Hussain is an acknowledged expert on childhood diabetes.
Professor Khalid Hussain is an acknowledged expert on childhood diabetes.

Childhood diabetes and the best ways to diagnose and manage the disease were the subject of the latest installment of WCM-Q's Grand Rounds lecture series.

The talk, entitled ‘Diabetes in Children: Causes, Classification and Management’ was delivered by Professor Khalid Hussain, chief of pediatric endocrinology at Sidra Medicine.

Speaking to a lecture hall of physicians, nurses, pharmacists and other healthcare professionals, Prof. Hussain outlined the different types of diabetes in children, explained how particular diagnoses can alter the treatment and management of the disease, and spoke about the research that is furthering the understanding of childhood diabetes. He also reminded the audience of the basic symptoms of the condition and that diabetes manifests itself through either a defect in the body’s production of insulin leading to a higher concentration of glucose in the blood, or a defect in the action of insulin – essentially the body does not make insulin or it becomes resistant to it.

In children, Prof. Hussain said that type 1 diabetes, where the pancreas fails to produce enough insulin, is the most common, whereas in adults, type 2 diabetes is more prevalent and manifests itself as insulin resistance. Type 2 diabetes is generally related to lifestyle and affects around 17 percent of people in Qatar whereas type 1 is a complex autoimmune disease.

Along with these most common variations of the condition, Prof Hussain also outlined other types of the condition, including neonatal, mitochondrial, syndromic and MODY (Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young). He went on to describe the most effective management of the various types of diabetes and how accurate diagnosis of the specific variation affects the medication and control of the disease.

The lecture was accredited locally by the Qatar Council for Healthcare Practitioners-Accreditation Department and internationally by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education.

Dr. Stephen Atkin, professor of medicine at WCM-Q, said: “Professor Hussain is an acknowledged expert on childhood diabetes and a renowned clinician and researcher. His talk has been truly valuable for healthcare professionals and his work in the laboratory will hopefully continue to bring further enlightenment to the topic.”