ABSTRACT
This chapter introduces diabetes and the different types from a global perspective. World prevalence and incidence figures for diabetes are presented and discussed, as well as the different resources that countries may employ in its management. Monogenic diabetes results from the inheritance of a mutation or mutations in a single gene. In children, almost all monogenic diabetes results from mutations in genes that regulate beta-cell function in the pancreas, although diabetes can, rarely, occur from mutations, resulting in very severe insulin resistance. Monogenic diabetes is associated with a strong family history of diabetes, and taking a genetic test should be considered if diabetes is present in several generations of a family. Finland has the highest incidence of childhood diabetes in the world, at 64.2 per 100 000 per year in 2005, followed by Sardinia, Canada and Sweden. Field data suggest that the incidence of childhood diabetes in some countries is underestimated, as many children die before their diabetes is diagnosed.
