Glycemic control metrics using flash glucose monitoring and hospital complications in patients with COVID-19.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Few studies have reported on the use of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) during the Covid-19 pandemic. We aimed to examine glycemic control metrics using flash glucose monitoring during insulin treatment and the clinical outcome in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Prospective, single-center cohort of adult patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes or hyperglycemia and COVID-19 infection treated with basal bolus insulin regimen. Glycemic control was assessed with the use of intermittent Freestyle Libre flash glucose monitoring during the hospital stay. Outcome of interest were time in range [TIR], time above [TAR] and below [TBR] range, glycemic variability [coefficient of variation [% CV]), and differences in a composite of complications including ICU admission, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and acute kidney injury. RESULTS: A total of 60 patients were included (44 known diabetes and 16 new onset hyperglycemia). In total 190,080 data points of CGM were available, of which 72.5% of values were within the target area [TIR (70-180 mg/dL)], 22% TAR (>180 mg/dL), and 3% were TBR (<70 mg/dL). During treatment, the coefficient of variation (% CV) was 30%. There were no association with TIR, but patients with TAR >180 mg/dl had higher rates of a composite of complications (22.5% vs 16%, p = 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: Basal bolus insulin regimen was safe and effective in achieving inpatient glycemic control in most patients with COVID-19. The association between TAR and complications indicates the need for improved inpatient glycemic control in hospitalized patients with COVID-19.

Cuidados de enfermería para la persona adulta, diabética con hipoglucemia: revisión integrativa / Nursing care for the adult diabetic experiencing hypoglycemia: an integrative review

Introducción:La hipoglucemia es la complicación más frecuente del tratamiento con insulina en adultos. Los eventos de hipoglucemia severa se asocian con complicaciones a corto, mediano y largo plazo en pacientes con diabetes mellitus. Una de las estrategias para reducir la frecuencia de hipoglucemia son las intervenciones de enfermería y aunque hay pocos estudios que las enuncian de manera explícita, se ha publicado respecto a las necesidades de dichos pacientes, que permiten determinar diagnósticos de enfermería y a partir de ellos establecer metas e intervenciones para el cuidado de dichos pacientes. Objetivo: identificar los cuidados de enfermería para prevenir y controlar los eventos de hipoglucemia en pacientes adultos diagnosticados con diabetes mellitus. Metodología: revisión integrativa, se realizó en seis fases: planteamiento de la pregunta PICO; búsqueda en bases de datos y metabuscadores; lectura crítica; análisis, clasificación, validación por nivel de evidencia y grado de recomendación, y presentación de la información. Resultados: la revisión reportó cinco categorías: factores de riesgo y protectores, miedo a la hipoglucemia, atención brindada al paciente, disminución de la hipoglucemia y descripcióndel impacto de la hipoglucemia en los pacientes. Conclusiones: a partir de las necesidades reportadas en las 5 categorías de los resultados se determinaron características definitorias y factores relacionados que permitieron formular diagnósticos de enfermería y determinar como principales intervenciones: enseñanza del proceso de enfermedad, medicamentos prescritos, entrenamiento de asertividad, manejo de la hipoglicemia, nutricional y de la medicación, mejorar el afrontamiento, enseñanza individual, facilitar el aprendizaje y potenciación de la disposición de aprendizaje.

ntroduction: hypoglycemia is the most common complication of insulin therapy in adults. Events of severe hypoglycemia are associated with short, medium and long term complications in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). One of the strategies to reduce the frequency of hypoglycemia are nursing interventions and although there are few studies that explicitly describe them, there are publications on the needs of such patients, allowing the determination of nursing diagnoses and based on them, setting goals and interventions to deliver care for these patients. Objective: to identify nursing care interventions to prevent and control hypoglycemic events in adult patients diagnosed with DM. Methodology: an integrative review was conducted in six phases: posing the PICOT question; search in databases and metasearch engines; critical reading; analysis, classification, validation by level of evidence and degree of recommendation, and data presentation. Results: the review reported five categories: risk and protective factors, fear of hypoglycemia, care provided to the patient, decrease in hypoglycemia and description of the impact of hypoglycemia on patients. Conclusions: Based on the needs reported in the resulting five categories, defining characteristics and related factors were determined allowing the formulation of nursing diagnoses and identifying the following as the main nursing interventions for hypoglycemia management: teaching of the disease process, prescribed medication, assertiveness training, hypoglycemia management, nutritional and medication therapy, improving coping, individual teaching, facilitating learning and empowering the willingness to learn.

Defining High Glycemic Variability in Type 1 Diabetes: Comparison of Multiple Indexes to Identify Patients at Risk of Hypoglycemia.

Background: International consensus on the use of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) recommends coefficient of variation (CV) as the metric of choice to express glycemic variability (GV) with a cutoff of 36% to define unstable diabetes. Even though, CV is associated with hypoglycemia in type 2 diabetes patients, the evidence on the use of one particular measure of GV in type 1 diabetes (T1DM) patients as a predictor of hypoglycemia is limited. Methods: A cohort of T1DM ambulatory patients was evaluated using CGM. Number and incidence rate of events <54 and <70 mg/dL were calculated. Bivariate and multivariate analysis of different glycemic indexes and clinical variables were performed to identify those associated with hypoglycemia. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis for each of the glycemic indexes was performed to define the best index and its optimal cutoff threshold to discriminate patients with events of hypoglycemia. Results: Seventy-three patients were included. A total of 128 events <54 mg/dL were recorded in 34 patients, and 350 events <70 mg/dL were registered in 51 patients. CV was the only variable significantly associated with hypoglycemia <54 mg/dL in the multivariate analysis (adjusted relative risk [aRR] 1.44, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10-1.88, P = 0.008). CV, HbA1c (glycated hemoglobin), and mean glucose were associated with events <70 mg/dL. ROC curve analysis showed that, among GV metrics, CV had the best performance to discriminate patients with events <54 mg/dL (area under the curve [AUC] 0.87, 95% CI: 0.79-0.95) and events <70 mg/dL (AUC 0.79, 95% CI: 0.68-0.90) with optimal cutoff thresholds values of 34% and 31%, respectively. Among glycemic risk (GR) indexes, low blood glucose index (LBGI) showed the best performance. Conclusions: This analysis shows that CV is the best GV index, and LBGI the best GR index, to identify patients at risk of clinically significant hypoglycemia and hypoglycemia alert events in T1DM patients.

Efficacy and safety of sensor-augmented pump therapy (SAPT) with predictive low-glucose management in patients diagnosed with type 1 diabetes mellitus previously treated with SAPT and low glucose suspend.

BACKGROUND: Sensor-augmented insulin pump therapy (SAPT) with low-glucose suspend (LGS) is an effective and safe alternative for treating patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). New predictive low-glucose management (PLGM) systems decrease the severity and duration of hypoglycemic events. However, evidence of benefits in patients previously treated with SAPT-LGS is limited. METHODS: A prospective before-after study was conducted in patients with T1DM treated with SAPT-LGS, who were switched to the Minimed® 640G system with SmartGuard® to assess the impact on A1c levels, severe hypoglycemia (SH), hypoglycemia unawareness (HU), and area under the curve (AUC) <70mg/dL after three months of follow-up. RESULTS: Fifty-five patients with T1DM with a mean age of 37.9 (IQR 6, 79) years and a mean baseline A1c level of 7.52±1.11% were enrolled. After three months under PLGM, A1c levels significantly decreased to 7.18±0.91% (p=0.004). SH rate decreased from 2.47 (CI 0.44, 4.90) to 0.87 (CI 0.22, 1.52) events/patient-year (Incidence rate ratio 0.353, 95% CI 0.178, 0.637), AUC <70mg/dL decreased from 0.59±0.76 to 0.35±0.65mg/dL x minute (p=0.030). HU determined by Clarke questionnaire resolved in 23 out of 30 patients (p=0.002). CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that SAPT with PLGM decreases the frequency of SH, HU, exposure to glucose levels below 70mg/dL, and A1c levels. Based on these results, this therapy should be considered in T1DM patients previously treated with SAPT-LGS with persistent SH and HU. Further clinical trials comparing the efficacy and safety of these features are required.

Factores asociados a mortalidad en pacientes con falla cardiaca descompensada / Factors associated with mortality in patients with decompensated heart failure

Introducción: la falla cardiaca (FC) es una de las principales causas de morbimortalidad a nivel mundial, la cual ha experimentado aumento gradual de su incidencia sin variación importante en su desenlace en las dos últimas décadas. En Colombia muy pocos estudios evalúan factores asociados a mortalidad por falla cardiaca. Métodos: estudio de cohorte prospectivo en el que se incluyeron pacientes con diagnóstico de falla cardiaca descompensada al momento del ingreso a urgencias, entre febrero de 2010 y marzo de 2013. Se calculó el tamaño de muestra y se realizó un análisis multivariado para la evaluación de los factores de riesgo asociados a mortalidad intrahospitalaria y a 30 días. Resultados: se incluyeron 462 pacientes. La mortalidad hospitalaria fue de 8.9% y a 30 días de 13.8%, en el modelo multivariado para el desenlace mortalidad intrahospitalaria se observó que la única variable con significancia estadística fue el BUN ≥43 mg/dL (OR, 3.45 [IC 95% 1.54-7.74], p= 0.003). Para la mortalidad a 30 días, la estancia hospitalaria >5 días (OR, 2.23 [IC 95% 1.20-4.12], p= 0.011), el BUN ≥43 mg/dL (OR, 2.55 [IC 95% 1.31-4.94], p= 0.005) y el NT-proBNP ≥ 4630 pg/dL (OR, 2.47 [IC 95% 1.30-4.70], p= 0.006). Conclusiones: la mortalidad intrahospitalaria de los pacientes con falla cardiaca descompensada en la población evaluada fue alta. En los análisis multivariados, se encontró que el BUN ≥ 43 mg/dL fue el único factor de riesgo independiente asociado a mortalidad intrahospitalaria; mientras que la mortalidad a 30 días se relacionó además con el NT-proBNP y la estancia hospitalaria superior a cinco días.

Introduction: heart failure is one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide; it has experienced a gradual increase in incidence with no significant variation in outcome in the last two decades. In Colombia there are no studies to evaluate risk factors for mortality, which is the subject of this study. Methods: prospective cohort study in which patients with diagnosis of decompensated heart failure on admission to the emergency department between February 2010 and March 2013 were included. The sample size was calculated and a multivariate analysis was performed to evaluate the risk factors associated with in-hospital and 30-day mortality. Results: 462 patients were included. Hospital mortality was 8.9% and 30-day mortality 13.8%; in the multivariate model for hospital mortality outcome was observed that the only variable with statistic significance was BUN ≥ 43 mg/dL (OR, 3.45 [95% CI 1.54- 7.74], p = 0.003). For 30 day mortality, hospital stay > 5 days (OR, 2.23 [95% CI 1.20-4.12], p = 0.011), BUN ≥43 mg/dL (OR, 2.55 [95% CI 1.31-4.94] , p = 0.005) and NT-proBNP ≥ 4630 pg/dL (OR, 2.47 [95% CI 1.30-4.70], p = 0.006). Conclusions: in-hospital mortality in patients with decompensated heart failure in the study population was high. In multivariate analysis, it was found that BUN ≥ 43 mg/dL was the only independent risk factor associated with hospital mortality, while the 30-day mortality was also associated with NT-proBNP and hospital stay greater than five days.