Treatment of hypoglycemia during prolonged physical activity in adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Background: Management of children with type 1 diabetes (T1DM) during physical activity in-cludes intensive blood glucose monitoring and proper insulin and nutritional adjustments in order to prevent hypoglycemia. Regarding the treatment of hypoglycemia during physical activity, different types of rapid act-ing carbohydrate (CHO) can be used and recommendations are still debated. Aim of the work: Compare the re-sponse to three types of frequently used rapid acting CHO to correct hypoglycemia during prolonged aerobic exercise. Subjects and Methods: 21 subjects with T1DM, aged 12-16 years, agreed to be recruited in the study. All participants took part in a trekking camp for 5 days, with 70 Km itinerary. A “flash monitoring” device was put on every participant and insulin and nutritional adjustments were done according to a protocol. Subjects have been randomized into three different groups: group 1 had to correct hypoglycemia with 0.3 g/Kg of a glucose preparation; group 2 used sugar fondant candies; group 3 used fruit juice. Results: No significant dif-ferences were highlighted among the three treatments in terms of time spent in hypoglycemia, rise in blood glucose levels and number of hypoglycemic events after correction of hypoglycemia. Conclusions: our results suggest that 0.3 g pro Kg of rapidly acting CHO in the form of glucose, sugar fondant or orange juice, ef-fectively resolve hypoglycemia in children during aerobic prolonged physical activity. (www.actabiomedica.it)