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BACKGROUND: In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of FreeStyle Libre Flash Glucose Monitoring (FGM) implementation in a real life clinical setting with the emphasis on the effect of initial education on the use of the FGM system. METHODS: This prospective observational study included 425 diabetes type 1 subjects followed up for 3 to 12 months (320 were followed up to 3 months, 267 up to 6 months and 147 up to period of one year). An FGM sensor was placed at study entry and all participants were educated through a period of 5 days on sensor usage and self-management of glycemia with follow up visits every 3 months. RESULTS: HbA1c values significantly decreased from baseline (T0) to 3 months (T3) (p < 0.001), with a drop from 7.48% ± 0.1% to 7.30 ± 0.1%. There was no change in time spent in hypoglycemia from T3 to T12, although there was a decreasing trend present. The change in HbA1c values in the entire cohort was driven by change in the subgroup of patients with HbA1c ≥7% with a drop from 8.22% ± 1.14% to 7.68% ± 1.26% (p < 0.0001) in the first 3 months. Also, in individuals performing SMBG less than 5 times per day, there was a steady decrease in HbA1c levels up to 6 months (p < 0.05 and p < 0.001, respectively) as opposed to those who performed SMBG ≥5 times per day. CONCLUSIONS: The improvement in HbA1c was mainly driven by the increase in the number of scans per day. The subjects with poorer glycemic control and those who seldom performed SMBG benefited the most.
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INTRODUCTION: Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists (RAs) are recommended therapy for type 2 diabetes (T2DM) and liraglutide is the most used worldwide. We assessed the glycemic efficacy and extra-glycemic effects of liraglutide during 36 months' follow-up of individuals with poorly regulated T2DM under routine clinical practice and sought to identify the phenotype of treatment responders. METHODS: A total of 207 individuals were included. The primary endpoint was the proportion of participants with HbA1c < 7.0% and/or weight reduction. Secondary endpoints included changes in lipids, blood pressure, fasting c-peptide, and antidiabetic treatment during follow-up of 3 years. RESULTS: Liraglutide was prescribed to 89.8% of participants already on at least two antidiabetic medications and 18% on insulin. Subject's mean age was 53.28 ± 9.42 years with duration of diabetes 8.29 ± 4.89 years. Baseline HbA1c was 8.5 ± 1.3% and body mass index (BMI) was 39 ± 4.5 kg/m2. Reduction of HbA1c was observed in 84.4% of participants, and 89.2% experienced average weight reduction of 5 kg. A composite outcome (reduction of HbA1c with any weight loss) was achieved in 76.2% of patients. After 6 months on liraglutide treatment, 38.1% of participants achieved target HbA1c level < 7%. This effect was maintained for 36 months in 50.8% of subjects. Increase in c-peptide was evident after 24 months (p = 0.030). Participants experienced a significant reduction in systolic blood pressure (BP) (p = 0.003), while there was no effect on diastolic BP, lipid profile, or liver enzymes. The number of participants treated with sulfonylurea decreased from 60.8% to 17.5%, while the number treated with insulin and sodium-glucose co-transporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitor increased (17.6% to 24.6% and 2.5% to 36.8%, respectively). Independent predictors of durability of HbA1c reduction were initial BMI (p = 0.004), HbA1c (p < 0.001), systolic BP (p = 0.007), and cholesterol (p = 0.020). Moreover, female gender and shorter duration of diabetes were independent predictors for HbA1c reduction. CONCLUSION: Liraglutide shows sustained glycemic and extra-glycemic effects when used for treatment of obese poorly regulated individuals with T2DM.