Hypoglycemia in non-diabetic in-patients: clinical or criminal?
<h4>Background and aim</h4>We wished to establish the frequency of unexpected hypoglycemia observed in non diabetic patients outside the intensive care unit and to determine if they have a plausible clinical explanation.<h4>Methods</h4>We analysed data for 2010 from three dis...
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| Autores principales: | , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | article |
| Lenguaje: | EN |
| Publicado: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2012
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://doaj.org/article/f35322d4ed1b44fba5c7c87b4291dca2 |
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| Sumario: | <h4>Background and aim</h4>We wished to establish the frequency of unexpected hypoglycemia observed in non diabetic patients outside the intensive care unit and to determine if they have a plausible clinical explanation.<h4>Methods</h4>We analysed data for 2010 from three distinct sources to identify non diabetic hypoglycaemic patients: bedside and laboratory blood glucose measurements; medication records for those treatments (high-strength glucose solution and glucagon) commonly given to reverse hypoglycemia; and diagnostic codes for hypoglycemia. We excluded from the denominator admissions of patients with a diagnosis of diabetes or prescribed diabetic medication. Case notes of patients identified were reviewed. We used capture-recapture methods to establish the likely frequency of hypoglycemia in non-diabetic in-patients outside intensive care unit at different cut-off points for hypoglycemia. We also recorded co-morbidities that might have given rise to hypoglycemia.<h4>Results</h4>Among the 37,898 admissions, the triggers identified 71 hypoglycaemic episodes at a cut-off of 3.3 mmol/l. Estimated frequency at 3.3 mmol/l was 50(CI 33-93), at 3.0 mmol/l, 36(CI 24-64), at 2.7 mmol/l, 13(CI 11-19), at 2.5 mmol/l, 11(CI 9-15) and at 2.2 mmol/l, 8(CI 7-11) per 10,000 admissions. Admissions of patients aged above 65 years were approximately 50% more likely to have an episode of hypoglycemia. Most were associated with important co-morbidities.<h4>Conclusion</h4>Significant non-diabetic hypoglycemia in hospital in-patients (at or below 2.7 mmol/l) outside critical care is rare. It is sufficiently rare for occurrences to merit case-note review and diagnostic blood tests, unless an obvious explanation is found. |
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