A Prospective Study of the Development of Diabetes in Relatives of Patients with Insulin-Dependent Diabetes

THAT insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) is an autoimmune disorder is now generally accepted. Autoantibodies to cytoplasmic antigens in the pancreatic islet cells were originally described nearly 15 years ago in patients with the autoimmune polyglandular syndrome. 1 These islet-cell antibodies were subsequently found in 60 to 80 percent of patients in whom IDDM had recently developed, 2 , 3 as well as in some persons who were tested before IDDM developed. 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 However, the qualitative nature of the tests for islet-cell antibodies made it difficult to compare the results, not only between laboratories but also within laboratories. With the support of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation . . .