Current Rates of Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes Examined in New Study

Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are prevalent in 0.5% and 8.5% of US adults, respectively, according to the results of a recent study.

As treatment of type 1 diabetes continues to improve, more patients with the condition are expected to survive to adulthood, according to the researchers. For this reason, they sought to examine the prevalence of diabetes subtypes in US adults.

The researchers examined data from 58,186 participants, aged 20 years and older, in the National Health Interview Survey, 2016 and 2017. Among the 58,186, 6317 had diabetes (0.5% with type 1 diabetes and 8.5% with type 2 diabetes).

Type 2 was most prevalent among adults who were older, men, and those with lower family income and higher body mass index (BMI). Type 1 diabetes was more common in younger adults (age 20 to 44 years), non-Hispanic white people, those with higher education, and those with lower BMI.

“This study provides benchmark estimates on the national prevalence of diagnosed type 1 and type 2 diabetes among US adults. Further investigations are warranted to understand the reasons for disparities in such prevalence among subpopulations. Continued monitoring is needed to examine dynamic changes in the prevalence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes and their proportions in people with a diagnosis of diabetes in the US general population. The role of changing patterns in risk factors on the national prevalence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes also needs to be determined,” the researchers concluded.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Xu G, Liu B, Sun Y, et al. Prevalence of diagnosed type 1 and type 2 diabetes among US adults in 2016 and 2017: population-based study [published online September 4, 2018]. BMJ. doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k1497.