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Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults

Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA), sometimes called Type 1.5 diabetes, is a variety of Type I diabetes that affects adults and usually isn't diagnosed until after the age of 30. Unlike Type II diabetes, Type I is an autoimmune disorder, as is LADA.

  1. Misdiagnosis

    • LADA shares some symptoms with Type II diabetes and can be misdiagnosed as Type II, according to Diabetes Monitor.

    Features

    • According to Nikheel Kolatkar, M.D., people with LADA tend to be leaner and younger than typical Type II patients, and older than Type I patients, which can cause a misdiagnosis.

    Function

    • A deficiency of insulin causes LADA, rather than resistance to the body's produced insulin, which characterizes Type II diabetes.

    Time Frame

    • It can take years for a misdiagnosed LADA patient to receive the right diagnosis, because LADA tends to respond to the same treatments as Type II initially. It's only when those treatments start to fail that many doctors consider LADA instead.

    Expert Insight

    • According to a study published in the Volume 11, Issue 4 (pp 308-311) American Journal of Therapeutics, LADA can be excluded as a diagnosis if patients have elevated C-Peptide levels. Patients with normal C-Peptide levels require the more expensive anti-GAD (Glutamic Acid Decarboxylase) antibodies screening traditionally used to distinguish LADA from Type II diabetes.

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