Late-onset type 1 diabetes mellitus or latent autoimmune diabetes in adults: a teachable moment

Abstract

Adult-onset autoimmune diabetes (AOAD) is clinical form of diabetes with a wide spectrum of genotypical and phenotypical manifestations, which has risen in prominence in recent decades, probably due to greater interest in its pathogenic mechanisms, and increased identification of autoimmune markers. The clinical presentation may vary from type 1 diabetes mellitus to latent autoimmune diabetes in adults, which although clearly distinct from a theoretical viewpoint, may pose various clinical pitfalls in practice. We present the case of a patient with AOAD which featured several diagnostic challenges during follow-up.