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Type 1 no antibodies present after 20 yrs

marla 2

marla 2

Member
after 20 years of being a diabetic my new endo doctor tells me i am a type 2 diabetic because my blood did not have any antibodies in it. i was told after 20 years no antibodies was common anyone have any information to help me
 
My understanding was the GAD test was an indication of type 1 (or not) but not definitive.
A quick internet trawl of "antibodies and diabetes" uses language like "suggests" and "are characteristic of" and "thought to circulate" and "commonly found".

Was there a reason why, after 20 years, your endo suggested you had the test to identify anti-bodies?
Have you been struggling to manage your diabetes? In the UK, the GAD test is not something done on most diabetes reviews.
What impact has your endo's diagnosis had on your treatment?

Sorry for all the questions in response to yours - I guess I am as confused as you by this.

I hope you get some answers (to your question - mine are less important).
 
helensaramay said:
My understanding was the GAD test was an indication of type 1 (or not) but not definitive.
A quick internet trawl of "antibodies and diabetes" uses language like "suggests" and "are characteristic of" and "thought to circulate" and "commonly found".

Was there a reason why, after 20 years, your endo suggested you had the test to identify anti-bodies?
Have you been struggling to manage your diabetes? In the UK, the GAD test is not something done on most diabetes reviews.
What impact has your endo's diagnosis had on your treatment?

Sorry for all the questions in response to yours - I guess I am as confused as you by this.

I hope you get some answers (to your question - mine are less important).
Click to expand...
because of weight gain
 
marla 2 said:
after 20 years of being a diabetic my new endo doctor tells me i am a type 2 diabetic because my blood did not have any antibodies in it. i was told after 20 years no antibodies was common anyone have any information to help me
Click to expand...

The presence of GAD antibodies confirms you are a T1. The absence of GAD antibodies does not rule out T1. You would need to have other tests run to confirm either way.

From my understanding, you are unlikely to have antibodies after all this time (even if you had them 20 years ago) anyway.

Was the 'doctor' a GP or a Diabetes specialist at your hospital?
 
marla 2 said:
i have a list of other medical issues and she is only focused on my weight so far my treatment is the same but she wants me to include a weekly shot for type 2
Click to expand...
I had that - even without diabetes - everything was down to my weight. I suffered with my back for years until I accidentally got it stretched and pulled into proper alignment - I was half an inch taller too. All I'd ever got was 'lose weight and it will get better' advice.
 
Hi. NICE says that GAD too long after diagnosis can be negative for T1s in it's T1 Diabetes Guidelines. Also things like viruses can have the same effect as anti-bodies (see today's Daily Mail). Some on this forum would say that is not T1 but I don't agree as anything that destroys the beta cells is essentially T1. The T2 typing is too often used as a dumping ground for anything that isn't rigidly GAD related which isn't helpful
 
A type 1 diabetic won’t have antibodies 20 years after diagnosis. Antibodies are present years before diagnosis, and as long as your immune system are attacking your beta cells. When you get full blown diabetes and all your beta cells are dead your antibodies would get down to negative results.

Everyone has antibodies, even non diabetics. But type 1 diabetics have elevated levels of antibodies prior and under diagnosis. But taking an antibodies test years after diagnosis are pointless. I would say your GP have failed and should re-educate him/herself if he/she thinks that an antibodietest can prove anything after so many years. Not to mention that everyone has the antibodies. The antibodies that are attacking the beta cells are not something that sudden appear in just diabetics.
 
Pitfalls of testing pancreatic autoantibodies, according to this article in the journal 'PracticalDiabetes' : http://www.practicaldiabetes.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/29/2017/07/TT-Misra_P.pdf

  • A positive titre may not be diagnostic of type 1 diabetes
  • A negative result does not exclude type 1 diabetes
  • When tested after diagnosis, initial positive titres may become negative
  • Many laboratories do not offer a panel of autoantibodies and less than complete testing may miss people who are positive to another antibody
  • Assays that measure pancreatic autoantibodies may not be standardised
  • The significance and interpretation of pancreatic autoantibodies are understudied in people from non-white ethnic groups
(Points pertinent to this discussion in bold.)

The article also says:-
  • Antibodies to a variety of beta-cell components – including glutamate decarboxylase-65 (GAD-65), islet-antigen-2 (IA-2), zinc transporter-8 (ZnT8), insulin itself and, most recently, tetraspanin-7 – have been detected.
and
  • A proportion of people who have type 1 diabetes clinically do not have antibodies when measured at diagnosis. More antibodies are being discovered so it may be the case that some of these individuals have antibodies to, as yet, unknown antigens.
 
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