Type 1 vs type 2 diabetes diagnosis: Type 1 vs. Type 2 Diabetes: Difference, Symptoms, and More
Type 1 vs. Type 2 Diabetes: Difference, Symptoms, and More
Type 1 diabetes results from an autoimmune reaction and usually appears in adolescents and young adults. Type 2 diabetes develops over the course of many years. Risk factors include excess weight and a lack of exercise.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes may have similar names, but they’re different diseases with unique causes.
The key difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes is that type 1 is believed to be caused by an autoimmune reaction and develops early in life. Type 2 diabetes develops over the course of many years and is related to lifestyle factors such as being inactive and carrying excess weight. It’s usually diagnosed in adults.
Risk factors for type 1 diabetes are not as clear, but family history may play a role.
Causes of type 1 diabetes
The body’s immune system is responsible for fighting off foreign invaders, such as harmful viruses and bacteria.
Type 1 diabetes is believed to be caused by an autoimmune reaction.
In people with type 1 diabetes, the immune system mistakes the body’s own healthy cells for foreign invaders.
The immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. After these beta cells are destroyed, the body is unable to produce insulin.
Researchers don’t know why the immune system sometimes attacks the body’s own cells. It may have something to do with genetic and environmental factors, such as exposure to viruses.
Research into autoimmune diseases is ongoing. Diet and lifestyle habits do not cause type 1 diabetes.
Causes of type 2 diabetes
People with type 2 diabetes have insulin resistance. The body still produces insulin, but it’s unable to use it effectively.
Researchers aren’t sure why some people become insulin resistant and others don’t, but several lifestyle factors may contribute, including being inactive and carrying excess weight.
Other genetic and environmental factors may also play a role.
When you develop type 2 diabetes, your pancreas will try to compensate by producing more insulin. Because your body is unable to effectively use insulin, glucose accumulates in your bloodstream.
There are two main types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2.
Both types of diabetes are chronic diseases that affect the way your body regulates blood sugar or glucose. Glucose is the fuel that feeds your body’s cells, but to enter your cells it needs a key. Insulin is that key.
People with type 1 diabetes don’t produce insulin. You can think of it as not having a key.
People with type 2 diabetes don’t respond to insulin as well as they should and later in the disease often don’t make enough insulin. You can think of it as having a broken key.
Both types of diabetes can lead to chronically high blood sugar levels. That increases the risk of diabetes complications.
Risk factors for type 1 diabetes are less clear than risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
Known risk factors include:
- Family history: People with a parent or sibling with type 1 diabetes have a higher risk of developing it themselves.
- Age: Type 1 diabetes can appear at any age, but it’s most common among children and adolescents.
Type 2 diabetes risk factors
You’re at risk of developing type 2 diabetes if you:
- have prediabetes, or slightly elevated blood sugar levels
- are carrying excess weight or have obesity
- have a lot of belly fat
- are physically active less than 3 times a week
- are over age 45
- have ever had gestational diabetes, which is diabetes during pregnancy
- have given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds
- are Black, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian, or Alaska Native due to structural inequities contributing to health disparities
- have an immediate family member with type 2 diabetes
- have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
If not managed, type 1 and type 2 diabetes can lead to symptoms such as:
- urinating frequently
- feeling very thirsty and drinking a lot
- feeling very hungry
- feeling very fatigued
- having blurry vision
- having cuts or sores that don’t heal properly
- having blurry vision
- having very dry skin
- having more infections than usual
People with type 1 and type 2 diabetes may also experience irritability, mood changes, and unintentional weight loss.
Diabetes and numbness in hands and feet
People with type 1 and type 2 diabetes may experience numbness and tingling in their hands or feet. Good glucose management significantly reduces the risk of developing numbness and tingling in someone with type 1 diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA).
Although many of the symptoms of type 1 and type 2 diabetes are similar, they present in very different ways.
Many people with type 2 diabetes won’t have symptoms for many years, and their symptoms often develop slowly over a long period of time.
Some people with type 2 diabetes have no symptoms at all and don’t discover they have the condition until complications arise.
The symptoms of type 1 diabetes develop quickly, typically over the course of several weeks.
Once known as juvenile diabetes, this type usually develops in childhood or adolescence. But it’s possible to develop type 1 diabetes later in life.
There’s currently no cure for type 1 diabetes.
People with type 1 diabetes don’t produce insulin, so it must be regularly taken, and blood sugar levels must be regularly checked.
Some people take injections into soft tissue, such as the stomach, arm, or buttocks, several times a day. Other people use insulin pumps. Insulin pumps supply a steady amount of insulin into the body through a small tube.
Blood sugar testing is an essential part of managing type 1 diabetes because blood sugar levels can go up and down quickly.
Type 2 diabetes can be managed and even prevented with diet and exercise, but many people need extra support. If lifestyle changes aren’t enough, your doctor may prescribe medications that help your body use insulin more effectively.
Monitoring your blood sugar is an essential part of type 2 diabetes management, too. It’s the only way to know whether you’re meeting your target levels.
Your doctor may recommend testing your blood sugar occasionally or more frequently. If your blood sugar levels are high, your doctor may recommend insulin injections.
Type 1 diabetes can’t be prevented.
It may be possible to lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes through these lifestyle changes, such as:
- maintaining a moderate weight
- working with your doctor to develop a healthy weight-loss plan, if you have overweight
- increasing your activity levels
- eating a balanced diet and reducing your intake of sugary foods or overly processed foods
Even if you’re unable to prevent the disease, careful monitoring can get your blood sugar levels back to standard and prevent the development of severe complications.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 37.3 million people in the United States have diabetes. That’s slightly more than 1 in 11 people.
The CDC estimates that 8.5 million people are living with undiagnosed diabetes. That’s about 3.4 percent of all U.S. adults.
The percentage of people with diabetes increases with age. Among those 65 years old and older, the rate reaches 29.
2 percent.
Are men more likely to get diabetes?
Men and women get diabetes at roughly the same rate.
But prevalence rates are higher among certain races and ethnicities in the United States.
Statistics show that diabetes occurs more frequently among historically marginalized populations in the United States.
Research suggests that this may be due in part to environmental factors, such as the history of discriminatory housing and lending policies in the United States.
Researchers posit that these policies resulted in racially and ethnically segregated neighborhoods that have inadequate access to healthy foods, insufficient health educational resources, and higher rates of obesity—a risk factor for type 2 diabetes.
American Indian and Alaska Native adults are almost three times more likely than non-Hispanic white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes.
For both men and women, diabetes diagnoses are highest among American Indians and Alaska Natives, non-Hispanic blacks, and people of Hispanic origin.
Prevalence rates are higher for Hispanic Americans of Mexican or Puerto Rican descent than they are for those of Central and South American or Cuban descent.
Among non-Hispanic Asian Americans, people with Asian Indian and Filipino ancestry have higher rates of diabetes than people with Chinese or other Asian ancestries.
How common is type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is less common than type 2.
About 5 to 10 percent of people with diabetes have type 1. It usually develops in children, teens, and young adults — but can happen at any age.
How common is type 2 diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes is much more common than type 1, and 90 to 95 percent of people with diabetes have type 2.
Nutritional management and managing your blood sugar are key to living with diabetes.
If you have type 1 diabetes, work with your doctor to identify how much insulin you may need to inject after eating certain types of food.
For example, certain carbohydrates can cause blood sugar levels to quickly increase in people with type 1 diabetes.
You’ll need to counteract this by taking insulin, but you’ll need to know how much insulin to take. Learn more about type 1 diabetes and diet.
People with type 2 diabetes need to focus on healthy eating.
Weight loss is often a part of type 2 diabetes treatment plans. A doctor or nutritionist may recommend a low-calorie meal plan. This could mean reducing your consumption of animal fats and junk food.
Typically, people with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes are recommended to reduce their consumption of processed foods, trans fat, sugary drinks, and alcohol.
People with diabetes may need to try different diets and nutritional plans to find a plan that works for their health, lifestyle, and budget.
Read this article in Spanish.
Type 1 vs. Type 2 Diabetes: Difference, Symptoms, and More
Type 1 diabetes results from an autoimmune reaction and usually appears in adolescents and young adults. Type 2 diabetes develops over the course of many years. Risk factors include excess weight and a lack of exercise.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes may have similar names, but they’re different diseases with unique causes.
The key difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes is that type 1 is believed to be caused by an autoimmune reaction and develops early in life. Type 2 diabetes develops over the course of many years and is related to lifestyle factors such as being inactive and carrying excess weight. It’s usually diagnosed in adults.
Risk factors for type 1 diabetes are not as clear, but family history may play a role.
Causes of type 1 diabetes
The body’s immune system is responsible for fighting off foreign invaders, such as harmful viruses and bacteria.
Type 1 diabetes is believed to be caused by an autoimmune reaction. In people with type 1 diabetes, the immune system mistakes the body’s own healthy cells for foreign invaders.
The immune system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. After these beta cells are destroyed, the body is unable to produce insulin.
Researchers don’t know why the immune system sometimes attacks the body’s own cells. It may have something to do with genetic and environmental factors, such as exposure to viruses.
Research into autoimmune diseases is ongoing. Diet and lifestyle habits do not cause type 1 diabetes.
Causes of type 2 diabetes
People with type 2 diabetes have insulin resistance. The body still produces insulin, but it’s unable to use it effectively.
Researchers aren’t sure why some people become insulin resistant and others don’t, but several lifestyle factors may contribute, including being inactive and carrying excess weight.
Other genetic and environmental factors may also play a role. When you develop type 2 diabetes, your pancreas will try to compensate by producing more insulin. Because your body is unable to effectively use insulin, glucose accumulates in your bloodstream.
There are two main types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2.
Both types of diabetes are chronic diseases that affect the way your body regulates blood sugar or glucose.
Glucose is the fuel that feeds your body’s cells, but to enter your cells it needs a key. Insulin is that key.
People with type 1 diabetes don’t produce insulin. You can think of it as not having a key.
People with type 2 diabetes don’t respond to insulin as well as they should and later in the disease often don’t make enough insulin. You can think of it as having a broken key.
Both types of diabetes can lead to chronically high blood sugar levels. That increases the risk of diabetes complications.
Risk factors for type 1 diabetes are less clear than risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
Known risk factors include:
- Family history: People with a parent or sibling with type 1 diabetes have a higher risk of developing it themselves.
- Age: Type 1 diabetes can appear at any age, but it’s most common among children and adolescents.
Type 2 diabetes risk factors
You’re at risk of developing type 2 diabetes if you:
- have prediabetes, or slightly elevated blood sugar levels
- are carrying excess weight or have obesity
- have a lot of belly fat
- are physically active less than 3 times a week
- are over age 45
- have ever had gestational diabetes, which is diabetes during pregnancy
- have given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds
- are Black, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian, or Alaska Native due to structural inequities contributing to health disparities
- have an immediate family member with type 2 diabetes
- have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
If not managed, type 1 and type 2 diabetes can lead to symptoms such as:
- urinating frequently
- feeling very thirsty and drinking a lot
- feeling very hungry
- feeling very fatigued
- having blurry vision
- having cuts or sores that don’t heal properly
- having blurry vision
- having very dry skin
- having more infections than usual
People with type 1 and type 2 diabetes may also experience irritability, mood changes, and unintentional weight loss.
Diabetes and numbness in hands and feet
People with type 1 and type 2 diabetes may experience numbness and tingling in their hands or feet. Good glucose management significantly reduces the risk of developing numbness and tingling in someone with type 1 diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA).
Although many of the symptoms of type 1 and type 2 diabetes are similar, they present in very different ways.
Many people with type 2 diabetes won’t have symptoms for many years, and their symptoms often develop slowly over a long period of time.
Some people with type 2 diabetes have no symptoms at all and don’t discover they have the condition until complications arise.
The symptoms of type 1 diabetes develop quickly, typically over the course of several weeks.
Once known as juvenile diabetes, this type usually develops in childhood or adolescence. But it’s possible to develop type 1 diabetes later in life.
There’s currently no cure for type 1 diabetes.
People with type 1 diabetes don’t produce insulin, so it must be regularly taken, and blood sugar levels must be regularly checked.
Some people take injections into soft tissue, such as the stomach, arm, or buttocks, several times a day. Other people use insulin pumps. Insulin pumps supply a steady amount of insulin into the body through a small tube.
Blood sugar testing is an essential part of managing type 1 diabetes because blood sugar levels can go up and down quickly.
Type 2 diabetes can be managed and even prevented with diet and exercise, but many people need extra support. If lifestyle changes aren’t enough, your doctor may prescribe medications that help your body use insulin more effectively.
Monitoring your blood sugar is an essential part of type 2 diabetes management, too. It’s the only way to know whether you’re meeting your target levels.
Your doctor may recommend testing your blood sugar occasionally or more frequently. If your blood sugar levels are high, your doctor may recommend insulin injections.
Type 1 diabetes can’t be prevented.
It may be possible to lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes through these lifestyle changes, such as:
- maintaining a moderate weight
- working with your doctor to develop a healthy weight-loss plan, if you have overweight
- increasing your activity levels
- eating a balanced diet and reducing your intake of sugary foods or overly processed foods
Even if you’re unable to prevent the disease, careful monitoring can get your blood sugar levels back to standard and prevent the development of severe complications.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 37.3 million people in the United States have diabetes. That’s slightly more than 1 in 11 people.
The CDC estimates that 8.5 million people are living with undiagnosed diabetes. That’s about 3.4 percent of all U.S. adults.
The percentage of people with diabetes increases with age. Among those 65 years old and older, the rate reaches 29.
2 percent.
Are men more likely to get diabetes?
Men and women get diabetes at roughly the same rate.
But prevalence rates are higher among certain races and ethnicities in the United States.
Statistics show that diabetes occurs more frequently among historically marginalized populations in the United States.
Research suggests that this may be due in part to environmental factors, such as the history of discriminatory housing and lending policies in the United States.
Researchers posit that these policies resulted in racially and ethnically segregated neighborhoods that have inadequate access to healthy foods, insufficient health educational resources, and higher rates of obesity—a risk factor for type 2 diabetes.
American Indian and Alaska Native adults are almost three times more likely than non-Hispanic white adults to be diagnosed with diabetes.
For both men and women, diabetes diagnoses are highest among American Indians and Alaska Natives, non-Hispanic blacks, and people of Hispanic origin.
Prevalence rates are higher for Hispanic Americans of Mexican or Puerto Rican descent than they are for those of Central and South American or Cuban descent.
Among non-Hispanic Asian Americans, people with Asian Indian and Filipino ancestry have higher rates of diabetes than people with Chinese or other Asian ancestries.
How common is type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is less common than type 2.
About 5 to 10 percent of people with diabetes have type 1. It usually develops in children, teens, and young adults — but can happen at any age.
How common is type 2 diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes is much more common than type 1, and 90 to 95 percent of people with diabetes have type 2.
Nutritional management and managing your blood sugar are key to living with diabetes.
If you have type 1 diabetes, work with your doctor to identify how much insulin you may need to inject after eating certain types of food.
For example, certain carbohydrates can cause blood sugar levels to quickly increase in people with type 1 diabetes.
You’ll need to counteract this by taking insulin, but you’ll need to know how much insulin to take. Learn more about type 1 diabetes and diet.
People with type 2 diabetes need to focus on healthy eating.
Weight loss is often a part of type 2 diabetes treatment plans. A doctor or nutritionist may recommend a low-calorie meal plan. This could mean reducing your consumption of animal fats and junk food.
Typically, people with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes are recommended to reduce their consumption of processed foods, trans fat, sugary drinks, and alcohol.
People with diabetes may need to try different diets and nutritional plans to find a plan that works for their health, lifestyle, and budget.
Read this article in Spanish.
Diabetes mellitus: differential diagnosis, treatment features and control of the disease
Diabetes mellitus both types 1 and 2 is a chronic disease in which the body’s natural control of glucose levels is impaired.
Type 1 diabetes is a disease in which the pancreas does not produce enough insulin, and in most cases begins in childhood. Type 2 diabetes develops over time and is much more common than type 1. In type 2 diabetes, the body’s cells are not as sensitive to insulin (a condition called insulin resistance), so the pancreas must produce more insulin to control glucose levels. Over time, elevated glucose levels lead to tissue damage in various organs and systems, which can lead to diabetic neuropathy, kidney failure, and vision loss. These two diseases need to be treated with different regimens, so it is important to distinguish between type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Do you want to know more about diagnosis and treatment individually for you?
Differential diagnosis of diabetes
Sometimes it is not so easy to distinguish between type 1 and type 2 diabetes: there is still no single standard for differential diagnosis of these two conditions, based on clear clinical and diagnostic characteristics.
Although the determination of three indicators:
- C-peptide level,
- absence of autoantibodies to insulin, IA2 or
- and adiponectin to leptin ratio
are informative, they still do not fulfill a universal diagnostic role. The fact is that studies in the field of pathophysiology of diabetes indicate that not all patients show the classic differences between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. (For this reason, some experts even distinguish a separate form of this metabolic disease – type 1.5 diabetes mellitus.)
Diagnosis of type 1 diabetes. Diagnosis is usually made by a glycated hemoglobin (glycohemoglobin, HbA1C) blood test showing the average blood glucose level over the past two or three months. In addition, other blood tests may be used, including a random glucose test – if the level (regardless of food intake) is 200 mg / dL (11.1 mmol / L) or higher, this indicates diabetes, especially in combination with such symptoms like frequent urination and intense thirst.
A blood test for fasting blood sugar is done after an overnight fast. In this case, a reading of 126 mg/dL (6.9 mmol/L) or higher on two separate tests indicates diabetes mellitus.
Signs of type 1 diabetes include increased thirst, frequent urination, blurred vision, extreme hunger, unintentional weight loss, fatigue, weakness, and mood swings.
Diagnosis of type 1 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes mellitus is also usually diagnosed using a glycosylated hemoglobin test: a glycohemoglobin level of 6.5% or higher in two independent tests indicates diabetes. Also used are a random blood glucose test, a fasting blood sugar test, and an oral glucose tolerance test.
Signs Type 2 type 2 type include increased thirst, frequent urination, unintentional weight loss, fatigue, clouding, slowly healing ulcers, frequent infections, darkened skin and increased hunger.
Tests to distinguish type 1 from type 2 diabetes
Although an oral glucose tolerance test measuring insulin levels is not usually required to diagnose type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), there is a sharp increase in type 2 diabetes among young people people indicates that the assessment of insulin secretion is becoming more diagnostic value.
For example, the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) guidelines state that for differential diagnosis of diabetes in children, physicians must use
- insulin and C-peptide assessment,
- immune markers, e.g. antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase (GADA),
- study the family history in detail.
C-peptide is formed during the conversion of proinsulin to insulin. A C-peptide level below 5 U/mL (0.6 ng/mL) indicates DM 1; a fasting C-peptide level greater than 1 ng/dl in a patient who has had diabetes for more than 1-2 years is suggestive of type 2. Exception is individuals with type 2 diabetes with very high glucose levels (e.
g., >300 mg/dl ) and temporarily low levels of insulin or C-peptide, but which restores insulin synthesis as soon as normal glucose levels are restored.
Most patients with type 1 diabetes, but without a diagnosis, exhibit the classic symptoms of uncontrolled hyperglycemia, including polyuria, polydipsia (abnormal thirst), nocturia (nighttime urination), fatigue, and weight loss . In these patients, a random plasma glucose level of more than 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) is sufficient to establish a diagnosis of DM.
Occasionally, a patient who eventually develops type 1 diabetes will show only minor symptoms of the disease due to residual insulin secretion.
Immune markers to help distinguish between type 1 and type 2 diabetes
Early type 1 diabetes may be detected
- beta-cell antibodies (IA2),
- antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase (GADA),
- insulin antibodies –
however, these markers may not be present in type 2 diabetes.
Differentiation between type 1 and type 2 diabetes is aided by measurement of autoantibodies to beta cells within 6 months of diagnosis: their titers decrease after 6 months. Antibodies to glutamic acid decarboxylase (GADA) may be constantly present in DM 1.
Testing for beta-cell autoantibodies can replace costly genetic testing in patients with suspected juvenile-adult diabetes: a positive result from this test makes the diagnosis of juvenile-adult diabetes extremely unlikely.
However, the cross-presence of antibodies in both types of diabetes limits their use in the differential diagnosis of T1DM and T2DM, although autoantibodies predict earlier insulin requirements: Approximately 80% of patients with autoantibodies require insulin compared to 41% of patients without autoantibodies. And among young people with unclassified diabetes 93% of GADA-positive patients required insulin within 3 years of first diagnosis, compared with 51% of GADA-negative patients.
Antibody testing also helps in assessing pancreatic function and prospects for its maintenance.
Some Western experts suggest immediately treating diabetic patients with autoantibodies (presumably type 1 or type 1.5) with insulin, but switching those who test negative for antibodies (i.e. presumed to have type 2 diabetes) to oral medications.
In 89% of GADAb-positive patients at 3 years of follow-up, early insulin administration maintained C-peptide levels and presumably prolonged pancreatic beta-cell survival. Insulin dependence, defined as “survival insulin requirements”, was observed in 47% of control participants (who received oral sulfonylureas) and only 13% of patients who received early insulin. The theoretical benefit of this strategy is that if beta-cell depletion can be delayed, endogenous insulin production will help prevent post-meal glucose spikes.
In addition, it has also been recognized that delaying insulin therapy is one of the obstacles to achieving the target HbA1C <7.0 in patients with type 2 diabetes.
Features of the manifestation of diabetes
but then followed by an asymptomatic “honeymoon period”, when the symptoms of the disease disappear, and the patient needs a small amount of insulin, or even can do without it.
Such remission is explained by a partial return of endogenous insulin secretion and can last for several weeks or months (sometimes even up to 1-2 years). However, eventually the disease “comes back” and the patient requires insulin therapy.
Partly because of the difficulty of differential diagnosis, clinicians have proposed not to use the terms T1DM or T2DM, which is neither clinically nor cost effective, but to distinguish between insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetes. Above all, clinicians should focus on reaching optimal targets for better diabetes control.
Approach to the management of type 1 diabetes
Patients with type 1 diabetes require lifelong insulin therapy. Most of them require two or more injections of insulin per day, while the doses of the hormone are adjusted based on blood glucose levels, which must be constantly monitored.
The long-term management of patients with insulin-dependent diabetes requires a multidisciplinary approach that includes physicians, nurses, nutritionists and individual specialists.
Patients with newly diagnosed type 1 diabetes who have mild symptoms and are assessed as compliant can start insulin treatment on an outpatient basis. However, this decision requires careful training in insulin administration and the need for self-monitoring of blood glucose, as well as signs of hypoglycemia.
Type 1 diabetes treatment is now available in leading Western clinics specializing in the treatment of both adult and pediatric patients.
Type 2 diabetes management strategy goals
For most patients, target glycohemoglobin (HbA1c) should be less than 7% at pre-meal blood glucose levels of 80–130 mg/dL (4.4–7.2 mmol/L ), although targets should always be calibrated by the treating physician.
Individuals with recurrent episodes of severe hypoglycemia, cardiovascular disease, or untreated psychiatric illness may be given higher targets, such as HbA1c below 8% and fasting blood glucose of 100–150 mg/dL (5.5–8.3 mmol\l).
While tight glycemic control is beneficial, the risk of hypoglycemia should be avoided.
Controlling the symptoms of type 2 diabetes can be challenging, but it’s necessary because keeping your blood sugar levels within target limits can reduce the risk of dangerous complications. This is achieved through diet, exercise, insulin therapy and/or certain classes of drugs:
- metformin,
- sulfonylurea derivatives,
- meglitinides,
- dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) inhibitors or gliptins
- Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists,
- sodium glucose co-transporter (SGLT-2) inhibitors, or glyphosides.
Studies show that most patients with type 2 diabetes require some dose of exogenous insulin after 8-10 years of the disease.
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Diabetes mellitus (types 1 and 2) – diagnosis and treatment at the medical center “Andreev Hospitals” , which contributes to an increase in the level of glucose in the body, as well as other metabolic disorders.
Diabetes mellitus type 1 (IDDM), type 2 (NIDDM), gestational and other types. IDDM is associated with a lack of insulin: the pancreas does not cope with its functions, It either does not produce insulin at all, or produces very little insulin. With NIDDM, insulin is produced in sufficient, sometimes even excessive amounts, but it is not used for its intended purpose, as tissues lose sensitivity to it. Gestational diabetes develops during pregnancy.
Also distinguished: diabetes due to genetic errors in the action of insulin or in violation of the function of beta cells, in diseases of the pancreas, induced by drugs or infections, genetic syndromes, etc.
Causes of diabetes mellitus
- hereditary predisposition;
- obesity;
- diseases of the pancreas, leading to damage to beta cells;
- viral infections in persons with aggravated heredity;
- nervous stress;
- age;
- certain hormonal disorders;
- misuse of medications or alcohol abuse.
Symptoms of diabetes mellitus
- constant thirst and frequent urination leading to dehydration;
- feeling of weakness and fatigue;
- rapid weight loss with normal appetite;
- pain in the region of the heart;
- dizziness and periodic appearance of a “white veil” before the eyes;
- heaviness in the legs and cramps;
- cuts, wounds, etc. heal slowly.
Diagnosis of diabetes mellitus
First of all, the concentration of glucose in the blood is determined. To determine the severity of carbohydrate metabolism disorders, a glucose tolerance test is used.
Normally, glucose is not present in the urine, but in this disease it can cross the renal barrier. In view of this, the determination of glucose concentration in the urine is used as an additional diagnostic method.
In some cases, to clarify the causes of the disease, they resort to acetonuria (determination of the presence of acetone in the blood) and the determination of the insulin fraction, as well as the products of its metabolism in the blood.
In type 1 diabetes, the fraction of free insulin is greatly underestimated, if not completely absent.
In addition, additional studies are carried out to diagnose complications and make a prognosis of diabetes mellitus: retinopathy (examination of the fundus of the eye), excretory urography (renal failure), electrocardiogram, etc.
Treatment of Diabetes Mellitus
Diabetes mellitus cannot be completely cured, so this disease will become a way of life for a person. Patients with this disease should always be under medical supervision. According to the severity of the course of diabetes, its first (mild), second (medium) and third (severe) stages are distinguished.
Traditional methods of diabetes therapy are based on the use of insulin, as well as sweeteners. The introduction of insulin reduces the concentration of glucose in the blood.
Comprehensive treatment of diabetes mellitus includes the use of civilin, livicin, medcivin and palm oil with beta-carotene.