Benefits of Insulin Pump in Children With Type 1 Diabetes

Highlights:

• Insulin pump system effectively improves glycemic consequences in young children with type 1 diabetes.
• The insulin pump increases the percentage of time spent in target glucose range and lowers A1c levels considerably.
• The present insulin pump available is the most advanced pump system used by many patients to manage diabetes

Insulin pump system effectively improves the glycemic consequences in young children with type 1 diabetes, finds a study. The findings of the study were presented at ENDO 2018, the 100th annual meeting of the Endocrine Society in Chicago, Ill. "The MiniMed™ 670G system can effectively manage diabetes and lead to improved time in the target glucose range and glycated hemoglobin (hemoglobin A1c) for individuals with type 1 diabetes between the ages of 7 and 75 who require at least eight units of insulin daily," said lead author Michael Alan Wood, M.D., Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Clinical Director of the Pediatric Diabetes Program at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Mich.

"Achieving and maintaining glycemic control can be a challenge for adults and youth living with type 1 diabetes. The MiniMed™ 670G system, the world’s first hybrid closed-loop insulin delivery system, automates and personalizes the delivery of basal insulin 24 hours a day," he said.

The scientists analyzed the data collected from 105 children between 7 and 13 years of age with type 1 diabetes. The children were asked to use the insulin pump for a two-week baseline period in open-loop mode and then for three months in-home study period with the hybrid-closed loop Auto Mode enabled.

The results of the study were compared with the data from the first trial of device which involved 30 adolescents between 14 and 21 years of age, and 94 adults between 22 and 75 years of age. In previous studies, in-home use of insulin pump for three months improved the percentage of time in the target glucose range (70-180mg/dL) and A1c levels in both adults and adolescents with type 1 diabetes.

Insulin pump benefited all age groups; it increased the percentage of time spent in target glucose range from 56.2 percent to 65.0 percent in children, from 60.4 percent to 67.2 percent in adolescents and from 68.8 percent to 73.8 percent in adults. The levels of A1c also considerably reduced in children from 7.9 percent to 7.5 percent, from 7.7 percent to 7.1 percent in adolescents and from 7.3 percent to 6.8 percent in adults.

No episodes of severe hypoglycemia or diabetic ketoacidosis were reported by children and they continued to use the pump.

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Wood indicated that it is necessary to test the pump in larger groups in order to confirm its potency. The present insulin pump available is the most advanced pump system used by many patients to manage type 1 diabetes.

About Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition in which the pancreas produce very little or no insulin. It is also known as insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). The most common symptoms of Type 1 diabetes are frequent urination, blurred vision, weight loss and weakness. Some of the complications related to diabetes are nerve damage, kidney damage, pregnancy complications and heart disease. The condition can be diagnosed by doing different blood tests like, Fasting plasma glucose (FPG) test, A1C test and Random plasma glucose (RPG) test.

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Source-Medindia