Screening

Type 1 diabetes develops gradually in stages. People at  high risk for type 1 diabetes  who don’t have symptoms can now get screened to see if they are in the early stages of the condition.

Screening for type 1 diabetes identifies if someone has certain autoantibodies, a signal that the immune system is mistakenly attacking the body’s insulin-making cells. Blood sugar levels are also checked.

Medicine to delay type 1 diabetes

Teplizumab is an FDA-approved medicine that can delay the progression of type 1 diabetes by slowing down the immune response that damages insulin-making cells.

This can delay type 1 diabetes symptoms, as well as the need for insulin injections. Teplizumab is given as a daily intravenous (IV) infusion for 14 days.

Teplizumab is for people with stage 2 type 1 diabetes to delay progression to stage 3, which is when symptoms appear. This medicine is approved for use in patients aged 1 year and older.

Teplizumab can be very expensive without health insurance coverage. However, patients may be eligible for a copay assistance program called Compass.

Medical advances

Teplizumab is the first major treatment option for people with type 1 diabetes since insulin therapy was developed over 100 years ago. Medical research is underway to discover new medicines and technologies to manage type 1 diabetes.