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Outcome Studies
in Laboratory Medicine

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Publication

Glucose as the Fifth Vital Sign: A Randomized Controlled Trial of Continuous Glucose Monitoring in a Non-ICU Hospital Setting.

Journal : Diabetes care
Authors : Fortmann AL, Spierling Bagsic SR, Talavera L, Garcia IM, Sandoval H, Hottinger A, Philis-Tsimikas A

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Open in PubMed
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10.2337/dc20-1016 : DOI
32855160 : PMID
PMC7576427 : PMC-ID

Objective

The current standard for hospital glucose management is point-of-care (POC) testing. We conducted a randomized controlled trial of real-time continuous glucose monitoring (RT-CGM) compared with POC in a non-intensive care unit (ICU) hospital setting.

Research Design And Methods

A total of 110 adults with type 2 diabetes on a non-ICU floor received RT-CGM with Dexcom G6 versus usual care (UC). RT-CGM data were wirelessly transmitted from the bedside. Hospital telemetry monitored RT-CGM data and notified bedside nursing of glucose alerts and trends. Standardized protocols were used for interventions.

Results

The RT-CGM group demonstrated significantly lower mean glucose (M∆ = -18.5 mg/dL) and percentage of time in hyperglycemia >250 mg/dL (-11.41%) and higher time in range 70-250 mg/dL (+11.26%) compared with UC ( values <0.05). Percentage of time in hypoglycemia was very low.

Conclusions

RT-CGM can be used successfully in community-based hospital non-ICU settings to improve glucose management. Continuously streaming glucose readings may truly be the fifth vital sign.