Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Patients with latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) are a clinically, immunologically, genetically heterogeneous group and the presence of thyroid autoimmunity (TA) appears to contribute to his heterogeneity.

The aim was to evaluate the impact of TA on microangiopathic complications in LADA patients.

Materials and method: LADA has been defined by the onset of diabetes at ages above 30 years, the lack of need for insulin therapy for at least 6 months after its first appearance, the presence of anti-GAD antibodies (GADA). Positive titers of anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies (TPOAbs) were observed in 30 (28.8%) out of 104 LADA patients. Prevalence of retinopathy (DR), peripheral neuropathy (PN), autonomic neuropathy (AN), and diabetic nephropathy (DN) were also evaluated.

Results: Patients with TA had twice the risk of RD compared to patients without TA, odds ratios 2.27 (95% CI 0.8–5.7, P=0.004). The risk of NP was 1.8 times higher in patients with TA compared with patients without TA (95% CI 0.7–4.4, P=0.04). Patients with TA are three times more likely to develop AN than patients without TA, odds ratio 3.4 (95% CI 1–11, P=0.014). From ten patients with DN, four of them (40%) had TA compared to 26 patients (27.7%) of 94 without DN. Patients with TA had the probability to develop this complication 1.7 times higher than those without TA, odds ratio 1.74 (95% CI 0.4–6.6, P=0.46).

Conclusions: Except diabetic nephropathy, the presence of TA in patients with LADA has determined a significantly higher prevalence of microangiopathic complications.

Acknowledgement: This paper is partly supported by the Sectorial Operational Programme Human Resources Development (SOPHRD), financed by the European Social Fund and the Romanian Government under the contract number POSDRU 141531.

Disclosure: This paper is partly supported by the Sectorial Operational Programme Human Resources Development (SOPHRD), financed by the European Social Fund and the Romanian Government under the contract number POSDRU 141531.