1. Introduction
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by progressive pancreatic β-cell destruction, resulting in little or no endogenous insulin secretion, as reflected by low or undetectable plasma C-peptide levels [
1]. Although T1D accounts for approximately 5% of all diabetes cases worldwide, it represents a substantial clinical and public health burden [
2]. The estimated global incidence is 15 cases per 100,000 person-years, with a prevalence of 9.5 per 10,000 individuals [
3]. Epidemiological studies have shown a progressive increase in T1D incidence across most world regions, highlighting its growing public health impact [
4].
Prevention of complications in individuals with T1D extends beyond glycemic control and includes optimal management of cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension and dyslipidemia [
5]. In addition, being overweight or being obese is increasingly common among adults with T1D, with prevalence rates comparable to those observed in the general population [
6]. Despite major therapeutic and technological advances, T1D remains associated with excess premature mortality and a substantial burden of chronic complications. Recent European registry studies have shown that cumulative exposure to adverse cardiometabolic risk factors—including elevated HbA1c, hypertension, dyslipidemia, smoking, and being overweight—is associated with progressively higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality [
7,
8].
Current evidence suggests that T1D is a heterogeneous disease in terms of clinical presentation, pathophysiology, treatment requirements, and risk of complications and mortality [
9]. This heterogeneity has led to the proposal of distinct biological endotypes and clinical phenotypes that may contribute to more individualized approaches to disease management. In 2023, Redondo et al. [
10] described biologically distinct T1D endotypes associated with differences in age at diagnosis, pancreatic histopathology, inflammatory infiltration, and β-cell dysfunction. Endotype 1 predominates in children diagnosed before 7 years of age, whereas endotype 2 is more frequently observed in individuals diagnosed during adolescence or adulthood. However, direct characterization of biological endotypes requires immunological and molecular markers that are not routinely available in real-world clinical practice. Therefore, in the present study, endotypes were operationally approximated according to age at diagnosis.
A substantial proportion of T1D cases are diagnosed during adulthood (≥30 years), frequently showing marked clinical and metabolic heterogeneity [
11]. This includes individuals with classical insulin-deficient presentations as well as others with slower β-cell decline despite confirmed autoimmunity, commonly referred to as latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) [
12]. In addition, factors such as being overweight, having a sedentary lifestyle, and having a family history of type 2 diabetes may contribute to reduced insulin sensitivity, leading to the concept of “double diabetes”, in which autoimmune diabetes coexists with metabolic features typically associated with type 2 diabetes [
13]. More recently, Weston et al. [
14] proposed an expanded framework integrating biological endotypes and clinical phenotypes, further supporting the heterogeneity of adult T1D and the potential value of more individualized approaches to classification and management.
Adult-onset autoimmune diabetes is frequently defined in the literature using age thresholds around 30 years, particularly in studies exploring LADA-like phenotypes and adult-onset autoimmune diabetes. In parallel, although no universally accepted definition of an insulin-resistant phenotype in T1D exists, high insulin requirements have been widely used as a pragmatic surrogate marker in real-world studies. In this context, we selected an insulin requirement of >1 IU/kg/day to identify patients with marked insulin resistance features in routine clinical practice.
The aim of this study was to describe the prevalence and clinical associations of operational age-at-diagnosis-based endotype classifications, adult-onset phenotypes, and insulin-resistant phenotypes in a large cohort of adults with T1D, and to explore whether these phenotypes identify clinically relevant differences beyond those explained by current age and diabetes duration.
2. Materials and Methods
We conducted a single-center, observational, cross-sectional study at a tertiary care hospital serving a population of over 300,000 inhabitants. To improve the applicability of this real-world cohort to routine clinical practice, all electronic health records (EHRs) corresponding to adults with T1D who attended between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2024 were reviewed.
The inclusion criteria were that the patient had clinically confirmed T1D, the patient’s age was ≥18 years, and the patient had at least one clinical evaluation between 1 January 2024 and the study review period (1 February 2025 to 31 July 2025).
The diagnosis of T1D was based on the clinical assessment of the treating physician and subsequently confirmed through a detailed review of the electronic health records. Diagnostic classification relied on clinical presentation, disease progression, and available autoimmune data when documented in routine clinical practice. Given the retrospective real-world design of the study and the long disease duration of the cohort, systematic C-peptide and autoantibody data at diagnosis were not consistently available.
The overall cohort description included all adults with clinically confirmed T1D under active follow-up. However, for specific clinical, metabolic, and treatment-related analyses, patients with diabetes of a duration < 6 months and those who had undergone combined kidney–pancreas transplantation were excluded when the corresponding variables were considered not clinically comparable or not adequately interpretable. Therefore, denominators varied across analyses according to data availability and evaluability for each specific variable.
The study sample was derived from consecutive inclusion of all eligible patients and was considered appropriate for descriptive analyses, between-group comparisons, and exploratory multivariable analyses.
Diabetic retinopathy was defined by the presence of non-proliferative or proliferative diabetic retinopathy documented in the electronic health record, and the mean HbA1c was defined as the average of the two most recent HbA1c measurements available before data extraction.
Categorical variables are presented as absolute frequencies and percentages, whereas continuous variables are expressed as mean ± standard deviation (SD) or median and interquartile range (IQR), as appropriate. Distributional assumptions were evaluated using graphical methods and normality testing when appropriate. Homogeneity of variances, distribution asymmetry, and the presence of extreme values were also assessed before selecting parametric or non-parametric tests.
Prevalence estimates and corresponding 95% confidence intervals were calculated using the Wilson method. Group comparisons were performed using Student’s t test or the Mann–Whitney U test for two-group comparisons, and one-way ANOVA or the Kruskal–Wallis test for multiple-group comparisons. Categorical variables were compared using Pearson’s chi-square test.
Given the retrospective exploratory design of the study, no formal primary or secondary endpoints were predefined. The analyses focused on glycemic control variables, treatment-related variables, chronic complications, and use of nephro- and cardioprotective therapies.
Exploratory multivariable analyses were conducted using multiple linear regression and binary logistic regression models. Covariate selection was based on clinical plausibility, the previous literature, and statistical considerations. Before multivariable analyses, potential collinearity among independent variables was formally assessed using tolerance values and variance inflation factors (VIF). No clinically relevant multicollinearity was identified (all tolerance values > 0.2 and all VIF values < 5). Model assumptions, including linearity of continuous associations when applicable, influential observations, and overall model adequacy, were evaluated before final model interpretation.
Analyses were performed using available data for each variable, and no imputation of missing data was conducted. Given the exploratory nature of the analyses, no correction for multiple comparisons was applied. Statistical analyses were performed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 28.0.0.0 (University of Castilla-La Mancha license). All tests were two-sided, and p values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant.
Operational age-at-diagnosis-based endotypes and clinical phenotypes were defined as follows: age-at-diagnosis-based endotype 1 (ED1), age at diagnosis ≤ 7 years; indeterminate endotype, 8–12 years; and age-at-diagnosis-based endotype 2 (ED2), >12 years. The adult-onset phenotype was defined as age at diagnosis ≥ 30 years. The insulin-resistant phenotype was pragmatically defined as an insulin requirement of >1 IU/kg/day, as a pragmatic surrogate marker of insulin resistance in routine real-world practice. Because these classifications were not mutually exclusive, overlap between categories was possible, and three separate analyses were performed: (1) age-at-diagnosis-based endotypes, (2) adult-onset phenotypes, and (3) insulin-resistant phenotypes.
Generative artificial intelligence tools were used exclusively for language editing and technical assistance. All aspects of study design, variable selection, data analysis, interpretation of results, and manuscript conclusions were performed by the authors, who take full responsibility for the content.
The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee for Medicinal Products of the Albacete Integrated Care Management (18 July 2024; reference No. 2024-091).
4. Discussion
Our cohort included a large real-world population of adults with T1D characterized by a long disease duration and widespread use of CGM technologies. These characteristics are consistent with a population at relevant risk of chronic diabetes-related complications and provide a useful framework for evaluating clinical heterogeneity in adult T1D. In addition, the relatively low proportion of patients lost to follow-up or transferred to other healthcare areas supports the robustness of the cohort and its applicability to routine clinical practice [
7,
8,
15,
16,
17,
18,
19,
20].
The prevalence of the age-at-diagnosis-based ED1 classification was 11.8%, whereas the adult-onset and insulin-resistant phenotypes were identified in 31.3% and 7.3% of the cohort, respectively. These findings further highlight the marked clinical heterogeneity of adult T1D. Direct comparison with previous studies is difficult because of differences in study populations, diagnostic criteria, and phenotype definitions. Nevertheless, the substantial proportion of patients diagnosed after 30 years of age is consistent with recent evidence showing that a considerable number of new T1D cases occur during adulthood [
21,
22,
23,
24,
25].
This observation may have important clinical implications, since β-cell autoimmunity is not uncommon among adults initially classified as having type 2 diabetes [
26,
27]. These findings support the need for careful diagnostic evaluation in selected adults with atypical clinical features [
21]. Similarly, the frequency of the insulin-resistant phenotype observed in our cohort is consistent with the concept of “double diabetes”, which has been associated with obesity, metabolic syndrome, and an adverse vascular risk profile [
28,
29].
The prevalence of being overweight or obese in our cohort was substantial and comparable to that reported in other international series of adults with T1D [
30,
31]. These findings are consistent with the growing recognition of metabolic heterogeneity in adult T1D. The use of diabetes technology was also widespread, with 20.4% of patients using CSII and 95.3% using CGM, figures comparable to or slightly higher than those reported in some contemporary cohorts [
32,
33]. The use of non-insulin therapies was limited and mainly concentrated in selected subgroups, in line with routine clinical practice and current evidence, which does not support their widespread routine use in T1D [
34,
35,
36].
Overall glycemic control was comparable to that observed in other international cohorts [
37]. However, the proportion of patients with TBR >4% and particularly > 10% remains clinically relevant, reflecting persistent exposure to hypoglycemia despite broad use of diabetes technologies [
38,
39]. These findings highlight the importance of continuing to optimize therapeutic strategies aimed at reducing hypoglycemia risk in adults with T1D.
Regarding the operational age-at-diagnosis-based endotype classification, the observed differences in current age and diabetes duration were expected because of the close relationship among these variables and age at onset itself. Although previous prospective studies such as TEDDY and INNODIA have supported the existence of biologically distinct T1D endotypes [
40,
41], our study used a pragmatic surrogate classification based exclusively on age at diagnosis. In this adult cohort, no major differences in glycemic control were observed across endotype groups when assessed by HbA1c or CGM-derived metrics. The previous literature in this field is heterogeneous and likely reflects not only potential biological differences but also behavioral, healthcare-related, and adherence-related factors [
42,
43]. Overall, our findings suggest that age-at-diagnosis-based endotype classifications may have limited ability to independently discriminate clinically relevant glycemic differences in adults with T1D.
Although ED1 was associated with a higher proportion of CSII use in the unadjusted analyses, this association was no longer independently significant after adjustment for current age and diabetes duration. This finding is consistent with previous evidence suggesting that technology uptake in T1D is more strongly influenced by factors such as current age, disease duration, socioeconomic context, and healthcare system organization than by age-at-diagnosis-based classifications alone [
44,
45,
46,
47,
48,
49]. Similarly, the greater use of metformin and other non-insulin therapies in ED2, as well as the progressive increase in lipid-lowering and nephro- and cardioprotective therapies with older age at diagnosis, did not remain independently associated after multivariable adjustment. These observations suggest that the identified differences were largely influenced by current age, diabetes duration, and metabolic characteristics commonly observed in adulthood rather than by the operational endotype classification itself [
50,
51,
52,
53,
54].
Diabetic retinopathy was more frequent among patients diagnosed at younger ages; however, this association did not remain independently significant after adjustment for diabetes duration and HbA1c. These findings are consistent with previous evidence indicating that cumulative glycemic exposure and longer disease duration are major contributors to retinopathy risk in T1D [
55,
56,
57,
58,
59,
60,
61,
62]. Similarly, no significant differences between age-at-diagnosis-based endotypes were observed for the albuminuria or impaired glomerular filtration rate. Taken together, our findings suggest that operational endotype classifications based exclusively on age at diagnosis may have limited ability to independently discriminate current complication risk in adults with established T1D.
By contrast, the adult-onset phenotype appeared to identify a clinically differentiated subgroup. These patients were older and had shorter diabetes duration, but showed a less favorable CGM-derived glycemic profile, characterized by a lower TIR and a higher TAR, despite only modest differences in HbA1c. In the multivariable analysis, the adult-onset phenotype remained independently associated with lower TIR, highlighting that CGM-derived metrics may capture clinically relevant differences in glycemic control that are not fully reflected by HbA1c alone. Although the available literature on this issue remains limited [
63,
64], our findings suggest that adult-onset T1D may represent a clinically distinct subgroup, potentially influenced by differences in residual β-cell function, insulin sensitivity, healthcare-related factors, and therapeutic decision-making.
In addition, patients with the adult-onset phenotype used CSII less frequently and were more commonly treated with metformin and nephro- and cardioprotective therapies. Lower use of diabetes technology may partly explain the less favorable glycemic profile observed in this subgroup. This finding is clinically relevant because current guidelines do not recommend restricting access to CSII or automated insulin delivery systems according to age at diagnosis [
65]. The greater use of cardiovascular and renal therapies is also consistent with the higher burden of cardiometabolic risk factors observed in these patients and with previous reports describing a less favorable vascular profile in adults with late-onset autoimmune diabetes [
66,
67].
Although descriptive analyses showed a lower crude prevalence of diabetic retinopathy in patients with the adult-onset phenotype, this association was no longer significant after adjustment for diabetes duration, HbA1c, and current age. These findings suggest that the lower prevalence of retinopathy observed in the descriptive analyses was largely explained by differences in diabetes duration rather than by an independent protective or adverse effect of the adult-onset phenotype itself.
Regarding the insulin-resistant phenotype, no significant differences were observed in current age, age at diagnosis, or diabetes duration. The cutoff used (>1 IU/kg/day) was intentionally conservative and likely identified a relatively small subgroup with more marked insulin resistance, which may have limited statistical power for some analyses. Nevertheless, this phenotype consistently showed worse glycemic control, characterized by higher HbA1c, lower TIR, and higher TAR, in agreement with previous studies linking insulin resistance to poorer metabolic outcomes in T1D [
68,
69,
70]. The absence of differences in CSII or CGM use suggests that these findings are unlikely to be explained solely by differential access to diabetes technology and may instead reflect underlying metabolic characteristics associated with insulin resistance. In this context, lifestyle interventions remain particularly important, since diabetes technologies may improve insulin delivery and glucose management but may not fully address the underlying insulin-resistant state [
71].
Patients with the insulin-resistant phenotype also showed greater use of metformin and nephro- and cardioprotective therapies. Although the evidence regarding metformin in T1D remains heterogeneous and does not support its widespread routine use, its prescription in this subgroup likely reflects attempts to address a more complex metabolic profile [
72,
73,
74]. Similarly, the greater use of lipid-lowering agents and renin–angiotensin system blockers is clinically consistent with previous evidence linking insulin resistance in T1D to obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, and chronic kidney disease [
13]. Although differences in microvascular complications did not reach statistical significance, the observed trend toward higher frequencies of retinopathy, albuminuria, and renal impairment is consistent with the previous literature [
75]. The relatively small size of this subgroup may have limited the ability to detect statistically significant differences in some analyses.
Our study has several important strengths. It includes a large real-world cohort of adults with T1D, with a low proportion of follow-up losses and broad use of CGM technologies. In addition, the study jointly evaluates operational age-at-diagnosis-based endotype classifications and clinically defined phenotypes, providing a comprehensive assessment of heterogeneity in adult T1D. The combined use of HbA1c and CGM-derived metrics allowed a more detailed characterization of glycemic control, while multivariable analyses helped explore associations independent of current age and diabetes duration.
Several limitations of this study should be acknowledged. First, the observational and cross-sectional design precludes causal inference. Second, some subgroup analyses, particularly those involving the insulin-resistant phenotype, may have been limited by the relatively small sample size. Third, the diagnosis of T1D and the operational endotype classification were based on routine clinical practice and age at diagnosis, without systematic immunological, molecular, or C-peptide characterization. Therefore, the proposed classifications should be interpreted as pragmatic surrogate approaches rather than biologically validated endotypes. In addition, the use of electronic health records may have resulted in incomplete or non-uniform data for some variables.