Introduction:
Increasing incidence of type 1 diabetes (T1D) coupled with increasing life expectancy have resulted in an unprecedented number of older adults living with T1D. However, little is known about the burden of aging and diabetes-related complications in this unique group. We hypothesized that older adults with T1D would have greater diabetes and aging-related burden compared to an age, sex, race/ethnicity, and education-matched group of older adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D).
Methods:
We compared the following characteristics by diabetes type among older adults (aged ≥60) with T1D (n=805) and T2D (n=249) from the Study of Longevity in Diabetes (SOLID) using chi-squared tests: diabetes history (age of onset, diabetes duration); diabetes-related complications (retinopathy, neuropathy, nephropathy, severe hypo- and hyperglycemia resulting in hospitalization/emergency department utilization), cardiovascular disease (stroke, MI, coronary bypass), and geriatric syndromes (depression, incontinence, memory problems and functional impairment).
Results:
Average age at diagnosis and duration of diabetes, respectively, were 28 years old and 40 years duration for T1D and 56 years old and 13 years duration for T2D (Table 1). Compared to T2D, participants with T1D were more likely to report history of retinopathy, neuropathy, nephropathy, lifetime hypo- and hyperglycemic events resulting in hospitalization/emergency department utilization, and history of a coronary bypass. By contrast, those with T2D were more likely to be incontinent and have functional impairment.
Conclusions:
Our results show that diabetes-related complications are more prevalent in those with T1D than in comparable adults with T2D, while certain geriatric syndromes were more prevalent in those with T2D. Older adults with T1D are a growing population with unique diabetes-specific and aging-related considerations. Additional research is needed to understand the interplay of aging and diabetes in this group to inform patient care .