Autoimmune Connective Tissue Disorders in Diabetic Patients

Since, on one hand, at least one type of diabetes mellitus is autoimmune in origin and, on the other hand, sometimes autoimmune diseases tend to coexist in the same patient, the potential association of diabetes mellitus and autoimmune diseases is of interest. As diabetes mellitus type 1 is, in many instances, an autoimmune glandular disease, there are other endocrine, as well as non-endocrine, autoimmune diseases associated with it. Recent years have highlighted the possibility that low-grade inflammation (which may be autoimmune-driven) is implicated in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus. It is therefore not surprising that several other autoimmune diseases are also associated to type 2 diabetes mellitus. This chapter reviews these potential associations and their possible implications.