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MD35 — Precise Identification of Diabetes Subtypes

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Children with Diabetes can be Easily Misdiagnosed

Type 1 diabetes is a common type of diabetes in children. Due to autoimmune problems, patients cannot produce insulin to control glucose, which require insulin injections to control the disease. Most of the children will be diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes after onset. However, not every diabetic children are Type 1 and this makes children with monogenic diabetes easily misdiagnosed. Data shows that more than 80% of MODY patients are misdiagnosed as other types of diabetes. Misdiagnosis can cause children and young diabetic patients miss out on the optimized treatment methods and opportunities.

Decode the Mysteries of Diabetes in Children and Youth

In addition to type 1 diabetes, monogenic diabetes is also one of the types of diabetes in children. Monogenic diabetes is a subtype of diabetes caused by a single gene mutation. Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY) is a main form of monogenic diabetes and usually diagnosed in late childhood to adulthood. It affects 1-2% of patients with diabetes and about 4% of patients with diabetes diagnosed under the age of 30. There are different types of MODY and the treatment method of different MODY types can be different, such as changing lifestyle or taking oral drugs, without insulin injection.

MD35 — Monogenic Diabetes Panel

Precise Treatment with Precise Diagnosis

Correct classification of subtypes is essential in children and youth with diabetes. MD35 precisely identify the specific type of MODY to help doctors determine MODY patients’ need and the most appropriate treatment, including changes in medications such as replacing insulin with oral drugs. Patients can benefit from personalized treatment, be informed of their prognosis and family planning.

Premarital screening is suggested for patients with MODY to inform them the risk of their future children inheriting the diabetes. Extended family screening and/or cascade screening is also recommended to advise patients' family members of their risk of inheriting MODY.

View MD35 leaflet

Target Groups

Diabetes patients with the following conditions:

People with young-onset diabetes

(especially those who are diagnosed before the age of 40 with multiple generations of diabetes)

Islet autoantibody negative and

substantial endogenous C-peptide level

with disease duration of more than 3 years

Mrs Lam and Her Son's Story

"Thanks to MD35, my son can live like a normal kid."

This story is inspired by our users' experiences and feedbacks and is presented here as illustration. Since each patient is unique, our services should not be seen in any way as guaranteeing outcomes.

My son has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at a young age. As a diabetic child, his life has always been a little different from his peers. Since receiving insulin treatment, he cannot leave the house without his insulin pen. He underwent many different therapies but his condition never improved much.

While diabetes runs in our family, and we have several diabetic patients among us, his condition does not exactly match typical clinical presentations seen in common types of diabetes. It all changed when our endocrinologist suggested that he should get tested for Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY) – a type of young-onset diabetes caused by a single gene mutation.

When he tested positive for a known MODY mutation, we realised he has been misdiagnosed as Type 1 diabetes since childhood. MD35 shed light on my son’s diagnosis and prompted our endocrinologist to change his treatment. Now my son uses oral medications to keep his blood sugar levels under control and rarely suffers episodes of low blood sugar. Despite being a diabetic child, he can still live normally and is now able to follow his friends everywhere.

References:

Shields BM, Shepherd M, Hudson M, McDonald TJ, Colclough K, Peters J, Knight B, Hyde C, Ellard S, Pearson ER, Hattersley AT. Population-Based Assessment of a
Biomarker-Based Screening Pathway to Aid Diagnosis of Monogenic Diabetes in Young-Onset Patients. Diabetes Care. 2017;40(8):1017-1025.
Carroll RW, Murphy R. Monogenic Diabetes: A Diagnostics Algorithm for Clinicians. Genes. 2013;4(4):522-535