More blood to be taken on Thursday. :(

smidge said:

Agree with Ian. I'd just add that a lack of antibodies doesn't necessarily indicate you're not autoimmune - it is just inconclusive - that's one of the reasons the doctors don't like doing them - cost is the other! Ask for a c-peptide test too -it tells you how much insulin you are producing - high BG and high insulin usually indicates Type 2 whereas high BG and low insulin usually indicates Type 1.

Smidge

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smidge said:

They might well have done the c-peptide Susie. The results of it give an indication of what type of diabetes you have, but it is not conclusive because poorly-controlled Type 2's can also show low insulin levels after they have had the condition for a long while and the constant high BGs has caused their pancreas to work ever-harder, and eventually caused the beta cells to die. So, a low c-peptide level would tell you that you are not producing enough insulin and probably need to inject insulin. It indicates Type 1 (or specifically LADA) diabetes in those relatively newly-diagnosed, but can indicate progression of Type 2 in those who have been poorly-controlled for a long time (either diagnosed or undiagnosed). If they found low-insulin levels, it would be sensible to follow-up with a GAD test to try to confirm the type. However, at the point where low-insulin is found, the treatment will be insulin whatever the type of diabetes, so they often don't bother to confirm the type at that stage.

With me, after having originally being misdiagnosed as Type 2 by my GP without any diagnostic tests I became very ill. The consultant suspected LADA and tested for the GAD antibodies. That came back highly positive and so he never did the c-peptide to see how much insulin I was producing - he put me straight onto insulin.

In reality, both tests together give the best indication of the type of diabetes you have, how it is likely to progress and what treatment is most appropriate.

Smidge

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