Continuous Glucose Monitoring (CGM) and Metabolic Control in a Cohort of Patients with Type 1 Diabetes and Coeliac Disease

Abstract

The association between type 1 diabetes (T1D) and coeliac disease (CD) is well known. Metabolic control of thirty-seven patients aged between 1 and 18 years, with coexisting T1D and CD were evaluated. The control group includes 37 patients affected only by diabetes. All data relating to the metabolic control of all patients were acquired through examination of medical records and CMG reports available on dedicated online platforms. Glucose variability was expressed as Coefficient of Variation (CV) and Standard Deviation of blood glucose values (SD). The formula used for CV computation is: CV (%) = 100 × SD (daily glycemia)/Mean (daily glycemia). Patients with T1D and CD showed a significant reduction in rapid pre-prandial insulin. The same reduction was present if we consider only patients using CGM. In patients without CGM, there was no difference in the doses of basal, pre-prandial and total insulin. Indicators of metabolic control were overlapping between the two groups in patients who used CGM. On the contrary, diabetic and coeliac patients without CGM had increased levels of glycaemic variability indicators and HbA1c. Finally, the percentage of target glycaemic values and >250 mg/dL glycaemic values were significantly decreased and increased, respectively in T1D and CD patients without CGM. With this study we wanted to demonstrate if CGM could improve metabolic control of patients with coexisting T1D and CD. Our data show a worse metabolic control in patients with T1D and CD who did not use CGM. Instead, patients who use CGM, regardless of the concomitant CD, manage to achieve the same glycaemic targets through an adjustment of titration of pre-prandial insulin doses.