Increased glycemic variability in type 2 diabetes patients treated with insulin - a real-life clinical practice, continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) study

Chronic hyperglycemia is an important cause for the development of chronic complications of diabetes, but glycemic variability has emerged in recent years as an independent contributor to diabetes-related complications. Our objective was to evaluate glycemic variability in patients with T2DM treated with insulin compared with other antidiabetic drugs. In this retrospective study, we collected 24-hour continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) recording data from 95 patients with T2DM, of which 27 treated with insulin and 68 with non-insulin treatment. We calculated and compared 16 glucose variability parameters in the insulin-treated and non-insulin treated groups. Insulin treated patients had significantly higher values of parameters describing the amplitude of glucose value fluctuations (standard deviation of glucose values, percentage coefficient of variation [% CV], and mean amplitude of glycemic excursion [MAGE], p < 0.05) and time-dependent glucose variability (percentage of time with glycemic values below 70 mg/dl and continuous overall net glycemic action [CONGA] at 2, 4 and 6 hours, p < 0.05). In conclusion, insulin therapy in T2DM is correlated with significantly higher glycemic variability.