Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity (Apr 2020)
Insulin Autoimmune Syndrome (Hirata Disease): A Comprehensive Review Fifty Years After Its First Description
Abstract
Daniele Cappellani,1 Enrico Macchia,1 Alberto Falorni,2 Piero Marchetti3 1Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Unit of Endocrinology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; 2Department of Medicine, Section of Internal Medicine and Endocrine and Metabolic Sciences, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy; 3Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Division of Metabolism and Cell Transplantation, University of Pisa, Pisa, ItalyCorrespondence: Daniele CappellaniDepartment of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Unit of Endocrinology, University of Pisa, Ospedale Cisanello, via Paradisa 2, Pisa 56124, ItalyTel +39 50 995001Fax +39 50 578772Email [email protected]: Insulin autoimmune syndrome (IAS), also named Hirata’s disease, is a rare condition characterized by hypoglycemic episodes due to the presence of high titers of insulin autoantibodies (IAA). IAS is a form of immune-mediated hypoglycemia, which develops when a triggering factor (ie, a medication or a viral infection) acts on an underlying predisposing genetic background. IAS pathogenesis involves the formation of insulin-IAA complexes that induce glycemic alterations with a double-phase mechanism: IAA prevent insulin to bind its receptor in the postprandial phase, possibly resulting in mild hyperglycemia; thereafter, insulin is released from the complexes irrespective of blood glucose concentrations, thus inducing hypoglycemia. The diagnosis of IAS is challenging, requiring a careful workup aimed at excluding other causes of hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia. The gold standard for the definitive diagnosis is the finding of IAA in a blood sample. Because IAS is frequently a self-remitting disease, its management mostly consists of supportive measures, such as dietary modifications, aimed at preventing the development of hypoglycemia. Pharmacological therapies may occasionally be necessary for patients presenting with severe manifestations of IAS. Available therapies may include drugs that reduce pancreatic insulin secretion (somatostatin analogues and diazoxide, for instance) and immunosuppressive agents (glucocorticoids, azathioprine and rituximab). The purpose of this review is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the disease, by describing the burden of knowledge that has been obtained in the 50 years following its first description, took in 1970, and by highlighting the points that are still unclear in its pathogenesis and management.Keywords: insulin autoimmune syndrome, IAS, Hirata, hypoglycemia, autoimmunity
