Type 1 diabetes
Page highlights
How many people are living with type 1 diabetes in Australia?
- Around 13,200 children and young adults aged 0–19 were living with type 1 diabetes in 2021.
- The prevalence of type 1 diabetes in 2021 was similar among males and females.
- Type 1 diabetes prevalence rates remained stable between 2014 and 2021.
How many people are newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in Australia?
- Males were 1.3 times as likely to be newly diagnosed (incidence) with type 1 diabetes as females in 2021.
- Type 1 diabetes incidence rates were highest in the 10–14 age group, for both males and females.
- Type 1 diabetes incidence rates remained relatively stable between 2000 and 2021.
How many people are living with type 1 diabetes in Australia?
There are currently no accurate national data on the total number of cases (prevalence) of type 1 diabetes at all ages (see Why is prevalence only reported for children and young adults with type 1 diabetes?) However, the National (insulin-treated) Diabetes Register (NDR) can provide reliable estimates for children and young adults. According to the NDR, around 13,200 children and young adults aged 0–19 were living with type 1 diabetes in 2021 (211 per 100,000 population).
Variation by age and sex
In 2021:
- the prevalence of type 1 diabetes was similar among males and females
- the majority (81%) of children and young adults with type 1 diabetes were aged 10–19
- the type 1 diabetes prevalence rate was around 15 times as high in children and young adults aged 15–19 as those aged 0–4 (416 and 27 per 100,000 population, respectively) (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Prevalence of type 1 diabetes in children and young adults, by age and sex, 2021
The chart shows prevalence of type 1 diabetes increased with age and was highest in those aged 15–19, for both sexes.
Trends over time
The age-standardised prevalence of type 1 diabetes among children and young adults remained relatively unchanged between 2014 and 2021 (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Prevalence of type 1 diabetes in children and young adults, by sex, 2014–2021
The chart shows stable rates between 2014 and 2021 for males and a rise for females, from 214 to 215 and 206 to 215 per 100,000 population, respectively.
Variation by priority population groups
Remoteness area
There was no clear pattern between the prevalence of type 1 diabetes among children and young adults and remoteness area in 2021. Overall, rates were highest in Inner regional and lowest in Remote and very remote areas (Figure 3).
Socioeconomic area
The prevalence of type 1 diabetes among children and young adults varied across socioeconomic areas in 2021, with rates being 1.2 times as high among the most disadvantaged areas compared with the least disadvantaged areas (Figure 3).
Figure 3: Prevalence of type 1 diabetes in children and young adults (0–19 years), by priority population group and sex, 2021
The chart shows rates were lowest for people living in the least disadvantaged areas and those in Remote and very remote areas.
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex.
- Age at first insulin use is used as a proxy for age of diagnosis.
- Remoteness is classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2016 Remoteness Areas structure based on postcode of current residence.
- Socioeconomic areas are classified according to population-based quintiles using the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (IRSD) based on Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) current residence.
- Rates may be influenced by the lower capture of First Nations people and those living in Remote and very remote areas or across states and territories with large remote communities on the National Diabetes Services Scheme.
Country of birth
Type 1 diabetes prevalence varied by country of birth. In 2021, age-standardised rates were 1.8 times as high among children and young adults born in North–West Europe as those born in Australia (Figure 4). Caution should be used when interpreting these data due to a high level of missing country of birth information for people on the linked NDSS and APEG data.
Figure 4: Prevalence of type 1 diabetes in children and young adults (0–19 years), by country of birth, 2021
Rates were highest in those born in North-West Europe and lowest in those from North-East Asia (271 and 39 per 100,000 population, respectively).
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Age at first insulin use is used as a proxy for age of diagnosis.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex.
- Excludes persons whose birth country was not stated or inadequately described.
- Country of birth is classified using major groupings from the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC) 2nd edition.
For information for First Nations people see chapter for First Nations people.
The NDSS registration forms and database have changed over time.
- Information recorded for older registrants is frequently incomplete for important variables, including diagnosis date and the date of first insulin use.
- The largest change occurred progressively between 2 December 2002 and 28 February 2003. At this time, the clinical terminology used to describe diabetes type was updated from juvenile-onset diabetes, Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus (IDDM) and Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus (NIDDM), to type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Prior to this, people registering with the NDSS with insulin-treated type 2 diabetes may have been incorrectly recorded as type 1 so that their insulin using needs could be met. This occurred because the NDSS registration form did not have an option for insulin-treated type 2 diabetes, reflecting diabetes classification at that time. All registrants that were classified as IDDM were reclassified as type 1 diabetes as there was no effective way to differentiate between diabetes types, resulting in misclassification for some people with insulin-treated type 2 diabetes.
- In 2015, Diabetes Australia commissioned the Australian Healthcare Associates (AHA) to conduct an audit to test the reliability of the NDSS database and determine whether diabetes type is correctly recorded. Almost 1 in 5 (17.9%) of people surveyed with reported type 1 diabetes were found to have type 2 diabetes (25 of 140), with 80% of these people initially registered prior to 2003 (20 of 25) (AHA 2015). Small numbers of individuals with reported type 2 diabetes were also found to be misclassified (23 of 695).
- The NDR uses NDSS data linked with the Australasian Paediatric Endocrine Group (APEG) state-based registries which is used as a secondary ascertainment dataset and a rigorous algorithm is applied to confirm diabetes type. The algorithm checks age at diagnosis and the period between diagnosis and first insulin use. These factors are important for confirming type 1 diabetes status due to younger diagnosis age and immediate requirement for insulin therapy for survival in type 1 diabetes. The validation undertaken for the NDR, as well as the use of a secondary ascertainment data source, provide confidence in the accuracy of diabetes type for younger Australians.
- The Australian Bureau of Statistics National Health Survey also provides national estimates for type 1 diabetes. However, small numbers for younger age groups results in high variability and limits the reporting that is possible on people living with type 1 diabetes. Further, survey questions relating to diabetes include ‘Diabetes – type 1 – (insulin dependent)’ as the type 1 diabetes option, which may result in incorrect selection for people with type 2 diabetes using insulin.
How many people are newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in Australia?
Around 58,600 people were newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes between 2000 and 2021 according to the National (insulin-treated) Diabetes Register (NDR). This was around 2,700 new cases of type 1 diabetes each year – an average of 7 newly diagnosed people a day.
There were 3,000 people newly diagnosed (incidence) with type 1 diabetes in Australia in 2021, equating to 12 diagnoses per 100,000 population.
Variation by age and sex
In 2021:
- nearly 2 in 3 people newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes were aged under 30
- incidence rates were highest in the 10–14 age group for both males and females, 36 and 31 per 100,000, respectively (Figure 5)
- after adjusting for differences in the age structure of the populations, type 1 diabetes incidence rates were 1.3 times as high among males as females.
Figure 5: Incidence of type 1 diabetes, by age and sex, 2021
The figure shows incidence of type 1 diabetes was slightly higher among females than males in those aged below 10.
Trends over time
Type 1 diabetes age-standardised incidence rates remained relatively stable between 2000 and 2021 with new diagnoses among males consistently being around 1.3 times as likely as females during the period (Figure 6).
Figure 6: Incidence of type 1 diabetes, by sex, 2000–2021
The figure shows type 1 diabetes incidence has been stable between 2000 and 2021, from 13.1 to 12.4 per 100,000 population.
Variation by priority population groups
Remoteness area
In 2021, type 1 diabetes incidence rates were lowest among people living in Remote and very remote areas and highest in those in Inner regional areas (Figure 7).
Socioeconomic area
The incidence of type 1 diabetes in 2021 was slightly lower in the least disadvantaged socioeconomic areas, but similar across the other areas (Figure 7).
Figure 7: Incidence of type 1 diabetes, by priority population group and sex, 2021
Rates were highest among people living in Inner and Outer regional areas those in the second most disadvantaged area.
Notes
- Age-standardised to the 2001 Australian Standard Population.
- Includes persons with missing or unassigned information on age and/or sex.
- Excludes persons whose remoteness area and/or socioeconomic area was missing or unassigned.
- Age at first insulin use is used as a proxy for age of diagnosis.
- Remoteness is classified according to the Australian Statistical Geography Standard 2016 Remoteness Areas structure based on postcode of current residence.
- Socioeconomic areas are classified according to population-based quintiles using the Index of Relative Socio-Economic Disadvantage (IRSD) based on Statistical Area Level 2 (SA2) current residence.
- Rates may be influenced by the lower capture of First Nations people and those living in Remote and very remote areas or across states and territories with large remote communities on the National Diabetes Services Scheme.
- n.p. Not published. Age-standardised rates based on a small number of events are considered unreliable and exhibit a large amount of random variation.
For information for First Nations people see chapter for First Nations people.
Reference
AHA (Australian Healthcare Associates) (2015) NDSS Registrant Details Audit Final Report for Diabetes Australia, AHA, Melbourne.