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The Lancet. Diabetes & Endocrinology May 2019Hypoglycaemia has long been recognised as a dangerous side-effect of treatment of diabetes with insulin or insulin secretagogues. With its potential to disrupt cerebral... (Review)
Review
Hypoglycaemia has long been recognised as a dangerous side-effect of treatment of diabetes with insulin or insulin secretagogues. With its potential to disrupt cerebral function, hypoglycaemia can have a major effect on peoples' lives. Study findings have suggested that hypoglycaemia is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events and mortality. Different mechanisms by which hypoglycaemia might provoke cardiovascular events have been identified in experimental studies, and in clinical studies cardiac arrhythmias have been reported to be induced by hypoglycaemia, with one report describing sudden death during a severe episode. Emerging evidence suggests that the association between hypoglycaemia and cardiovascular events and mortality is likely to be multifactorial. The association is probably partly caused by confounding, with hypoglycaemia occurring more frequently in people with comorbidities who are also more likely to die than those without. However, people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes also seem at risk of hypoglycaemia-induced cardiovascular effects. This risk should be recognised by clinicians when agreeing glycaemic goals with patients and choosing appropriate glucose-lowering therapies.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Cardiovascular Diseases; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2; Diabetic Angiopathies; Glycated Hemoglobin; Humans; Hypoglycemia; Hypoglycemic Agents; Insulin; Risk Factors
PubMed: 30926258
DOI: 10.1016/S2213-8587(18)30315-2 -
Diabetologia May 2021Hypoglycaemia (blood glucose concentration below the normal range) has been recognised as a complication of insulin treatment from the very first days of the discovery... (Review)
Review
Hypoglycaemia (blood glucose concentration below the normal range) has been recognised as a complication of insulin treatment from the very first days of the discovery of insulin, and remains a major concern for people with diabetes, their families and healthcare professionals today. Acute hypoglycaemia stimulates a stress response that acts to restore circulating glucose, but plasma glucose concentrations can still fall too low to sustain normal brain function and cardiac rhythm. There are long-term consequences of recurrent hypoglycaemia, which are still not fully understood. This paper reviews our current understanding of the acute and cumulative consequences of hypoglycaemia in insulin-treated diabetes.
Topics: Animals; Blood Glucose; Brain; Diabetes Mellitus; Humans; Hypoglycemia; Insulin
PubMed: 33550443
DOI: 10.1007/s00125-020-05366-3 -
Best Practice & Research. Clinical... Jun 2016Intensive glycaemic control reduces the diabetic microvascular disease burden but iatrogenic hypoglycaemia is a major barrier preventing tight glycaemic control because... (Review)
Review
Intensive glycaemic control reduces the diabetic microvascular disease burden but iatrogenic hypoglycaemia is a major barrier preventing tight glycaemic control because of the limitations of subcutaneous insulin preparations and insulin secretagogues. Severe hypoglycaemia is uncommon early in the disease as robust physiological defences, particularly glucagon and adrenaline release, limit falls in blood glucose whilst associated autonomic symptoms drive patients to take action by ingesting oral carbohydrate. With increasing diabetes duration, glucagon release is progressively impaired and sympatho-adrenal responses are activated at lower glucose levels. Repeated hypoglycaemic episodes contribute to impaired defences, increasing the risk of severe hypoglycaemia in a vicious downward spiral. Managing hypoglycaemia requires a systematic clinical approach with structured insulin self-management training and support of experienced diabetes educators. Judicious use of technologies includes insulin analogues, insulin pump therapy, continuous glucose monitoring, and in a few cases islet cell transplantation. Some individuals require specialist psychological support.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Disease Management; Glucagon; Humans; Hypoglycemia; Insulin
PubMed: 27432075
DOI: 10.1016/j.beem.2016.06.004 -
Frontiers in Endocrinology 2021Hypoglycemia is the result of defects/impairment in glucose homeostasis. The main etiological causes are metabolic and/or endocrine and/or other congenital disorders.... (Review)
Review
Hypoglycemia is the result of defects/impairment in glucose homeostasis. The main etiological causes are metabolic and/or endocrine and/or other congenital disorders. Despite hypoglycemia is one of the most common emergencies in neonatal age and childhood, no consensus on the definition and diagnostic work-up exists yet. Aims of this review are to present the current age-related definitions of hypoglycemia in neonatal-pediatric age, to offer a concise and practical overview of its main causes and management and to discuss the current diagnostic-therapeutic approaches. Since a systematic and prompt approach to diagnosis and therapy is essential to prevent hypoglycemic brain injury and long-term neurological complications in children, a comprehensive diagnostic flowchart is also proposed.
Topics: Child; High-Throughput Nucleotide Sequencing; Humans; Hypoglycemia
PubMed: 34408725
DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2021.684011 -
Experimental Physiology Apr 2020What is the topic of this review? Hypoglycaemia is a commonly cited barrier to exercise in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D). Knowledge of approaches to prevent or manage... (Review)
Review
NEW FINDINGS
What is the topic of this review? Hypoglycaemia is a commonly cited barrier to exercise in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D). Knowledge of approaches to prevent or manage exercise-induced hypoglycaemia can support patients to exercise and help clinicians to give advice. This review presents evidence-based strategies to prevent exercise-induced hypoglycaemia in T1D. What advances does it highlight? This review highlights approaches that can be used before, during and after exercise to mitigate the risk of hypoglycaemia. The approaches include the timing of exercise, the type of exercise, adjustments to insulin and carbohydrate, use of novel technology and education.
ABSTRACT
Exercise is a key component for the management of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) and is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, decreased daily insulin requirements and improved quality of life. Owing to these benefits, people with T1D are recommended to undertake regular physical activity, 150 min per week for adults and 60 min per day for children and adolescents. Despite the recommendations, many people do not meet these targets. One of the commonly cited barriers to exercise is fear of hypoglycaemia along with limited knowledge of effective preventative strategies. Hypoglycaemia can be difficult to predict, and symptoms are often masked during exercise or stress of competition. For athletes with T1D, hypoglycaemia can also limit sporting success. Hypoglycaemia before an event increases the risks of hypoglycaemia during competition and can reduce performance. To avoid hypoglycaemia, people with T1D may avoid exercise altogether or consume excessive amounts of carbohydrates, which mitigates many of the health benefits of exercise. Increased understanding of approaches to prevent or manage hypoglycaemia is therefore important to help increase levels of physical activity in people with T1D and to support athletes with T1D to compete at the highest level. This review outlines the prevalence of exercise-related hypoglycaemia, its underlying physiology and the strategies that can be used to prevent and manage exercise-induced hypoglycaemia in T1D. Our hope is that this knowledge will be used by people with T1D and their clinicians to find individual approaches to manage exercise-related hypoglycaemia.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1; Exercise; Humans; Hypoglycemia; Insulin
PubMed: 31785115
DOI: 10.1113/EP088219 -
Revue Medicale de Liege Feb 2014Hypoglycaemic episodes are rather common among diabetic patients, especially those treated with sulfonylureas or insulin (more in type 1 than in type 2 diabetes). The...
Hypoglycaemic episodes are rather common among diabetic patients, especially those treated with sulfonylureas or insulin (more in type 1 than in type 2 diabetes). The presentation of hypoglycaemia may considerably vary from patient-to-patient and from time-to-time in a given patient. With the illustration of a clinical case, we will describe the characteristics of the three main types of hypoglycaemia: severe hypoglycaemia (with or without coma), symptomatic hypoglycaemia (with or without confirmation) and asymptomatic hypoglycaemia ("hypoglycaemia unawareness") discovered as a low blood glucose measurement. We will also briefly analyse the reasons of such differences and the potential clinical consequences that these three main types of hypoglycaemia may exert in the real life of diabetic patients.
Topics: Diabetes Mellitus; Humans; Hypoglycemia; Hypoglycemic Agents
PubMed: 24683833
DOI: No ID Found -
The Lancet. Child & Adolescent Health Apr 2021Hyperglycaemia and hypoglycaemia are common in preterm infants and have been associated with increased risk of mortality and morbidity. Interventions to reduce risk... (Randomized Controlled Trial)
Randomized Controlled Trial
BACKGROUND
Hyperglycaemia and hypoglycaemia are common in preterm infants and have been associated with increased risk of mortality and morbidity. Interventions to reduce risk associated with these exposures are particularly challenging due to the infrequent measurement of blood glucose concentrations, with the potential of causing more harm instead of improving outcomes for these infants. Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is widely used in adults and children with diabetes to improve glucose control, but has not been approved for use in neonates. The REACT trial aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of CGM in preterm infants requiring intensive care.
METHODS
This international, open-label, randomised controlled trial was done in 13 neonatal intensive care units in the UK, Spain, and the Netherlands. Infants were included if they were within 24 h of birth, had a birthweight of 1200 g or less, had a gestational age up to 33 weeks plus 6 days, and had parental written informed consent. Infants were randomly assigned (1:1) to real-time CGM or standard care (with masked CGM for comparison) using a central web randomisation system, stratified by recruiting centre and gestational age (<26 or ≥26 weeks). The primary efficacy outcome was the proportion of time sensor glucose concentration was 2·6-10 mmol/L for the first week of life. Safety outcomes related to hypoglycaemia (glucose concentrations <2·6 mmol/L) in the first 7 days of life. All outcomes were assessed on the basis of intention to treat in the full analysis set with available data. The study is registered with the International Standard Randomised Control Trials Registry, ISRCTN12793535.
FINDINGS
Between July 4, 2016, and Jan 27, 2019, 182 infants were enrolled, 180 of whom were randomly assigned (85 to real-time CGM, 95 to standard care). 70 infants in the real-time CGM intervention group and 85 in the standard care group had CGM data and were included in the primary analysis. Compared with infants in the standard care group, infants managed using CGM had more time in the 2·6-10 mmol/L glucose concentration target range (mean proportion of time 84% [SD 22] vs 94% [11]; adjusted mean difference 8·9% [95% CI 3·4-14·4]), equivalent to 13 h (95% CI 5-21). More infants in the standard care group were exposed to at least one episode of sensor glucose concentration of less than 2·6 mmol/L for more than 1 h than those in the intervention group (13 [15%] of 85 vs four [6%] of 70). There were no serious adverse events related to the use of the device or episodes of infection.
INTERPRETATION
Real-time CGM can reduce exposure to prolonged or severe hyperglycaemia and hypoglycaemia. Further studies using CGM are required to determine optimal glucose targets, strategies to obtain them, and the potential effect on long-term health outcomes.
FUNDING
National Institute for Health Research Efficacy and Mechanisms Evaluation Programme.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Female; Glucose; Humans; Hyperglycemia; Hypoglycemia; Hypoglycemic Agents; Infant, Extremely Premature; Infant, Newborn; Infant, Premature; Infant, Very Low Birth Weight; Insulin; Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; Male; Monitoring, Physiologic; Netherlands; Spain; Time Factors; United Kingdom
PubMed: 33577770
DOI: 10.1016/S2352-4642(20)30367-9 -
Frontiers in Endocrinology 2023Adrenal insufficiency encompasses a group of congenital and acquired disorders that lead to inadequate steroid production by the adrenal glands, mainly glucocorticoids,... (Review)
Review
Adrenal insufficiency encompasses a group of congenital and acquired disorders that lead to inadequate steroid production by the adrenal glands, mainly glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids and androgens. These may be associated with other hormone deficiencies. Adrenal insufficiency may be primary, affecting the adrenal gland's ability to produce cortisol directly; secondary, affecting the pituitary gland's ability to produce adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH); or tertiary, affecting corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH) production at the level of the hypothalamus. Congenital causes of adrenal insufficiency include the subtypes of Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, Adrenal Hypoplasia, genetic causes of Isolated ACTH deficiency or Combined Pituitary Hormone Deficiencies, usually caused by mutations in essential transcription factors. The most commonly inherited primary cause of adrenal insufficiency is Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia due to 21-hydroxylase deficiency; with the classical form affecting 1 in 10,000 to 15,000 cases per year. Acquired causes of adrenal insufficiency can be subtyped into autoimmune (Addison's Disease), traumatic (including haemorrhage or infarction), infective (e.g. Tuberculosis), infiltrative (e.g. neuroblastoma) and iatrogenic. Iatrogenic acquired causes include the use of prolonged exogenous steroids and post-surgical causes, such as the excision of a hypothalamic-pituitary tumour or adrenalectomy. Clinical features of adrenal insufficiency vary with age and with aetiology. They are often non-specific and may sometimes become apparent only in times of illness. Features range from those related to hypoglycaemia such as drowsiness, collapse, jitteriness, hypothermia and seizures. Features may also include signs of hypotension such as significant electrolyte imbalances and shock. Recognition of hypoglycaemia as a symptom of adrenal insufficiency is important to prevent treatable causes of sudden deaths. Cortisol has a key role in glucose homeostasis, particularly in the counter-regulatory mechanisms to prevent hypoglycaemia in times of biological stress. Affected neonates particularly appear susceptible to the compromise of these counter-regulatory mechanisms but it is recognised that affected older children and adults remain at risk of hypoglycaemia. In this review, we summarise the pathogenesis of hypoglycaemia in the context of adrenal insufficiency. We further explore the clinical features of hypoglycaemia based on different age groups and the burden of the disease, focusing on hypoglycaemic-related events in the various aetiologies of adrenal insufficiency. Finally, we sum up strategies from published literature for improved recognition and early prevention of hypoglycaemia in adrenal insufficiency, such as the use of continuous glucose monitoring or modifying glucocorticoid replacement.
Topics: Child; Adult; Infant, Newborn; Humans; Adolescent; Hydrocortisone; Adrenal Hyperplasia, Congenital; Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring; Blood Glucose; Adrenal Insufficiency; Glucocorticoids; Adrenocorticotropic Hormone; Hypoglycemia; Iatrogenic Disease
PubMed: 38053731
DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1198519 -
Expert Review of Anti-infective Therapy Feb 2015In the developing world, hypoglycemia is a frequent complication among admitted children, particularly in malaria-endemic areas, and a defining feature of severe malaria... (Review)
Review
In the developing world, hypoglycemia is a frequent complication among admitted children, particularly in malaria-endemic areas, and a defining feature of severe malaria and associated with high case fatality rates (CFR). This complication could be much more common than currently considered, particularly because it frequently occurs without a direct immediate clinical translation. Its etiology has not yet been fully understood and is likely to be multifactorial. Routine screening and treatment of hypoglycemia, as recommended by international guidelines, may be challenging to perform in developing countries on account of the limited resources available. In this review, we discuss the published literature in relation with the incidence, risk factors, and consequences of hypoglycemia among malaria patients, aiming to improve our current understanding of this common and life-threatening complication of malaria.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Child; Hospitalization; Humans; Hypoglycemia; Incidence; Malaria; Prognosis; Risk Factors
PubMed: 25540871
DOI: 10.1586/14787210.2015.995632 -
Australian Journal of General Practice 2024
Topics: Humans; Hypoglycemia; Blood Glucose
PubMed: 38316482
DOI: 10.31128/AJGP/03-23-6752