Diabetes has five categories not just types one and two, study shows

There are five distinct types of diabetes that can occur in adulthood, rather than the two currently recognised, research has found. Scientists have unveiled a revised classification for the disease - one they said could lead to better treatments and help doctors more accurately predict life-threatening complications.

The findings are consistent with the growing trend toward "precision medicine", which takes into account differences between individuals in managing disease.

In the same way that a patient requiring a transfusion must receive the right blood type, diabetes sub-types need different treatments, the study reported in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology medical journal suggested. Scientists have also identified distinct kinds of microbiome - the bacterial ecosystem in our digestive tract - that can react differently to the same medication, rendering it more or less effective.

"This is the first step towards personalised treatment of diabetes," said senior author Leif Groop, an endocrinologist at Lund University in Sweden, adding that the new classification is a "paradigm shift" in how the disease is viewed.


https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/03/02/diabetes-has-five-categories-not-just-types-oneand-two-study/