The term "diabetes mellitus" is an antiquated term which was coined centuries ago. It doesn't reflect the current realities. The diagnostic term has to keep up with the advances in the understanding of the pathophysiology and treatments, With this in mind the new terminology is proposed. Diabetes is a global health concern.
However, the term “diabetes” connotes archaic concepts and needs to be reviewed. The ancient Greek physician Aretaeus of Cappadocia is often recorded as the first person to use the term “diabetes” (meaning “excessive discharge of urine”) in the first century CE. Later, the word “mellitus” (sweet) was added by Thomas Willis in 1674 after he noted the sweetness of patients’ urine and blood. However, it was only about 100 years ago that some treatments for diabetes came into existence, with the real advances in the understanding and treatment of diabetes emerging only…
