Visual Abstract
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a progressive disease with many patients requiring insulin treatment. Basal insulin (BI) is often added first followed by escalation to a multiple subcutaneous insulin injection (MSI) regimen. However, many patients with T2DM struggle managing the MSI regimen. As a result, their glycemic control remains poor after starting MSI. Our study investigates whether switching back to BI alone would improve glycemic control. Patients with T2DM and A1C ≥9.0% on MSI regimen seen in our clinic over two years were included in this analysis. Main study outcome was the A1C after ≥3 months of switching back to BI as compared to continuing MSI. We found 24 patients who were switched from MSI to BI and compared them with 58 patients who were continued on MSI (see Table). There were no significant differences at baseline between the two groups. On follow-up, the BI group had a mean change in A1C (%) of -1.6 ± 2.0 compared to -0.7 ± 1.5 in the MSI group. In addition, the daily dose of prescribed insulin on follow-up was lower in the BI group at 46 ± 14 units/day compared to 90 ± 70 units/day in the MSI group. Hypoglycemia rates were also lower in the BI group at 12% compared to 20% in the MSI group. We conclude that simplification of insulin regimen may improve A1C and decrease the risk of hypoglycemia in patients poorly controlled on MSI regimen. The improved glycemic control is likely related to improved adherence and lower risk of errors.
A. Arunachalam: None. R. Garg: None.
