Type 2 diabetes mellitus: Isn’t it time to update the terminology?

Table 1 Why to update the terminology?

Why to update the terminology
The term diabetes mellitus gives the impression that it is only a disease of high blood sugar, with the excretion of sugar in the urine
Acute and chronic complications, including microvascular and macrovascular complications, are common in T2DM
The glucocentric approach is replaced by overall risk reduction (multi-risk strategy), and the organ protective approach indicates our knowledge about the pathophysiology of the illness
Multidirectional interaction between metabolic diseases such as T2DM, cardiovascular disease, and chronic kidney disease is well established
Cardiovascular and renal complications are integral parts of T2DM
Long-term remission of T2DM was achievable through weight reduction
Weight reduction is associated with improvement/remission of hypertension, dyslipidemia, metabolic dysfunction associated fatty liver disease, and other obesity-associated conditions in addition to T2DM
“Twin cycle hypothesis”: Chronic excess fat accumulation leads to hepatic and pancreatic dysfunction, leading to the development of T2DM
The strong pathophysiological link between diabetes and obesity is well described by the term ‘diabesity’
T2DM in people with normal body weight and even in lean individuals, develops when the “personal fat threshold” is crossed
“Thin fat obesity” indicates that even in people with a normal body mass index can have increased fat deposition in the visceral organs
Term for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease has been updated to metabolic dysfunction associated fatty liver disease/metabolic dysfunction associated steatotic liver diseases
The new terminology reflects the pathophysiological basis of T2DM from other types of diabetes

T2DM: Type 2 diabetes mellitus.