Association of Individual or Family History of Autoimmune Disease With Future Development of Type 1 Diabetes

Timely diagnosis of type 1 diabetes (T1D), especially in high-risk populations, is crucial for preventing serious health complications. T1D is a chronic progressive autoimmune disease that has presymptomatic stages that can be identified through the detection of islet autoantibodies. Given that T1D is associated with other autoimmune diseases, having either those diseases or a family history of them will represent a risk of T1D. From a search of the literature conducted in August 2024, we review here the evidence for the risk of either T1D or the development of T1D in association with other autoimmune diseases or a family history of those diseases. Increased risk of subsequent T1D development was identified for individuals with autoimmune diseases, including coeliac disease, autoimmune thyroid disease, autoimmune Addison's disease, juvenile idiopathic arthritis, primary biliary cholangitis, ulcerative colitis, vitiligo, and myasthenia gravis. Increased prevalence of diabetes-associated autoantibody positivity was found among non-diabetic individuals with coeliac and autoimmune thyroid diseases compared with individuals without these autoimmune diseases. Increased risk of T1D was also found for individuals with a family history of autoimmune diseases, including coeliac disease, thyroid disease, Addison's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjögren's syndrome, autoimmune liver disease, pernicious anaemia, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis, and granulomatosis with polyangiitis. This review highlights how certain individuals at risk of T1D can be identified to offer them islet autoantibody screening and, thereby, early detection of T1D.