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  • Review Article
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Type 2 diabetes mellitus in older adults: clinical considerations and management

Nature Reviews Endocrinology volume 17, pages 534–548 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

The past 50 years have seen a growing ageing population with an increasing prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM); now, nearly half of all individuals with diabetes mellitus are older adults (aged ≥65 years). Older adults with T2DM present particularly difficult challenges. For example, the accentuated heterogeneity of these patients, the potential presence of multiple comorbidities, the increased susceptibility to hypoglycaemia, the increased dependence on care and the effect of frailty all add to the complexity of managing diabetes mellitus in this age group. In this Review, we offer an update on the key pathophysiological mechanisms associated with T2DM in older people. We then evaluate new evidence relating particularly to the effects of frailty and sarcopenia, the clinical difficulties of age-associated comorbidities, and the implications for existing guidelines and therapeutic options. Our conclusions will focus on the effect of T2DM on an ageing society.

Key points

  • Older adults (≥65 years of age) with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) account for nearly half of all individuals with diabetes mellitus.

  • T2DM in older adults is highly heterogeneous but is generally associated with various degrees of underlying insulin resistance, excess adiposity, β-cell dysfunction and sarcopenia.

  • The management of T2DM in older adults is complicated by the frequent occurrence of multimorbidity, necessitating highly individualized approaches.

  • The presence of frailty, cognitive decline and functional impairments in older adults with T2DM highlights the importance of liaison with carers and social support.

  • Targets for glycaemic control in older adults with T2DM are often less stringent than in younger adults to avoid hypoglycaemia and minimize unbeneficial interventions.

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Fig. 1: Pathophysiological links between ageing, obesity and T2DM.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston University, Birmingham, UK

    Srikanth Bellary, James E. Brown & Clifford J. Bailey

  2. University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK

    Srikanth Bellary

  3. Aston Research Centre for Healthy Ageing (ARCHA), Aston University, Birmingham, UK

    Srikanth Bellary, James E. Brown & Clifford J. Bailey

  4. Warwickshire Institute for the Study of Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism (WISDEM), University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK

    Ioannis Kyrou

  5. Aston Medical Research Institute, Aston Medical School, Aston University, Birmingham, UK

    Ioannis Kyrou

  6. Warwick Medical School, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK

    Ioannis Kyrou

  7. Centre for Sport, Exercise and Life Sciences, Research Institute for Health & Wellbeing, Coventry University, Coventry, UK

    Ioannis Kyrou

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S.B. has received research grants from The Binding Site Ltd. and Novo Nordisk, UK, Ltd. as well as speaker fees and honoraria from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, MSD, Novo Nordisk, Janssen, Eli Lilly, and Sanofi-Aventis outside of the submitted work. C.J.B. has received personal fees from AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Elcelyx, Lexicon, Poxel, Eli Lilly, Janssen, Merck, Sharpe & Dohme, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi-Aventis. J.E.B. has received speaker fees from Gilead Biosciences Inc. I.K. has no competing interests to declare.

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Literature searches were conducted using Google Scholar, MEDLINE and Embase with the following terms: ‘elderly’, ‘frail’, ‘older people’ and ‘aged’ combined with ‘diabetes’, ‘type 2 diabetes’, ‘prediabetes’ and ‘glucose control’. The selection was made by at least two of the present authors and was limited to English language articles from 2000 to 2020 and relevant references cited in the publications selected. Priority was given to prospective randomized studies and meta-analyses, though these were scarce, and observational and descriptive studies, guidelines, and policy documents were also consulted.

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Bellary, S., Kyrou, I., Brown, J.E. et al. Type 2 diabetes mellitus in older adults: clinical considerations and management. Nat Rev Endocrinol 17, 534–548 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-021-00512-2

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