Perception of hyper-/hypoglycemia and its related factors in type 2 diabetes: a continuous glucose monitoring-based prospective observational study.

Aims: Underestimating hyper-/hypoglycemia or failure to perceive hyperglycemia hinders optimal glucose management in diabetes care. Our study investigated individuals who, while aware of their hyper-/hypoglycemia, may not perceive them as problematic. Also, we clarified the factors contributing to discrepancies between these individuals' perceptions and the objective measurements.

Materials and methods: This study was a prospective observational study comprising 284 Japanese individuals with type 2 diabetes who underwent ambulatory blinded professional continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) and self-administered the Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire (DTSQ). Individuals with a time above range (TAR; > 180 mg/dL) ≥ 25% and those who answered 0 ("never") or + 1 ("almost never") for the frequency of hyperglycemia in the DTSQ were defined as having no-perception of hyperglycemia. Individuals with a time below range (TBR; < 70 mg/dL) ≥ 4% with an answer of 0 or + 1 for the frequency of hypoglycemia were labeled as having no-perception of hypoglycemia. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to analyze clinical characteristics associated with the discrepancies between failure to perceive hyper-/hypoglycemia and TAR ≥ 25% or TBR ≥ 4%.

Results: Insulin-use (odds ratio [OR] = 0.29, p < 0.05) and older age (OR = 1.05, p < 0.05) were independent determinants of no-perception of hyperglycemia. Low eGFR was an independent determinant of no-perception of hypoglycemia (OR = 0.94, p < 0.05).

Conclusions: No-insulin-use, being an older adult, and renal dysfunction are linked to the discrepancy between the perception of hyper-/hypoglycemia and actual blood glucose. These results will help create personalized diabetes care.