I would like to have information about neonatal diabetes mellitus, transient diabetes of the newborn. I am a post graduate attached to the Institute of Child Health-Madras. There have been reports of just one case of neonatal diabetes in the past 10 years.

Neonatal diabetes is a very rare condition and about half of the cases are transitory so that insulin can be dispensed with after a few weeks. The other half have a permanent deficiency of insulin and sometimes of the exocrine pancreas as well. Some cases are associated with an abnormality on the long arm of chromosome 6; but most of the permanent cases are thought to be due to some interruption of the complex path of the growth of pancreatic ductal cells into islet cells. This has recently become a field of great interest in the treatment of autoimmune diabetes.

I think that the most helpful thing that I can do since you have access to the Internet, is to suggest that you search under ‘neonatal diabetes’ in PubMed. You will find a considerable number of references though you may have to go to the library to see the full text.

DOB