Slate

Exactly how many adults with Type 1 diabetes are misdiagnosed each year in the United States is hard to track. Regina Castro, an endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic, estimates that anywhere between 10 to 30 percent of adults diagnosed with Type 2 each year may in fact have Type 1. In 2015, the year for which data is most recently available, 1.5 million adults were diagnosed with diabetes, which is how, even taking the conservative end of Castro’s estimate, you get to the possibility that tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands go misdiagnosed each year. “It is under-recognized and more prevalent than we think,” said Castro.

Reach: Slate is a daily magazine on the web. Founded in 1996, we are a general-interest publication offering analysis and commentary about politics, news, business, technology, and culture.

Context: Dr. Regina Castro is an endocrinologist at Mayo Clinic and her interests are in diabetes and thyroid disorders.

Contact: Bob Nellis

Tags: diabetes, Dr. Regina Castro, endocrinology, Endocrinology / Diabetes, Mayo Clinic Rochester, Slate