Latent Autoimmune Diabetes of Adults (LADA)

Classic type 1 diabetes (T1DM) is of acute onset and most often occurs during childhood. Children usually have symptoms of diabetes for no more than 2 to 6 weeks. A more slowly progressive form of autoimmune diabetes that presents in adulthood is latent autoimmune diabetes of adulthood (LADA) [1]. LADA is therefore a form of T1DM.

Subjects who present with a “non-insulin dependent diabetes” phenotype that carry HLA-DR3 or DR4 are likely to express islet autoantibody and are more likely to become insulin-requiring compared with DR3/DR4-negative type 2 diabetes (T2DM) subjects [2].

The most sensitive islet autoantibody markers of LADA are glutamic acid decarboxylase autoantibodies (GADA) and zinc transporter 8 autoantibodies (ZnT8A).

^References

1. ^{Brahmkshatriya PP, Mehta AA, Saboo BD, Goyal RK. Characteristics and prevalence of latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA). ISRN Pharmacol 2012;2012:580202.}
2. ^{Kitabchi AE, Umpierrez GE, Murphy MB, Kreisberg RA. Hyperglycemic crises in adult patients with diabetes: a consensus statement from the American Diabetes Association. Diabetes Care. 2006 Dec;29(12):2739-48.}