• Reem Alamoudi, Maram Alsubaiee, Ali Alqarni, Yousef Saleh, Saleh Aljaser, Abdul Salam, and Mohsen Eledrisi.
• 1 Department of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal National Guard Hospital , Dammam, Saudi Arabia .
• Diabetes Technol. Ther. 2017 Jun 1; 19 (6): 349-354.

IntroductionFasting Ramadan carries a high risk for patients with type 1 diabetes (T1DM). Data on the optimum insulin regimen in these patients are limited.ObjectivesTo compare glucose profiles in patients with T1DM who use continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) compared with those who use multiple daily injections (MDI) insulin regimen during Ramadan fast. The primary outcome was rates of hypoglycemia. Other outcomes included glycemic control, number of days needed to break fasting, and acute glycemic complications.MethodsPatients with T1DM who were on CSII or MDI and decided to fast Ramadan were recruited. Glucose data collected using self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) and continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) were compared in the two groups, CSII and MDI, and glucose control was assessed by measuring serum fructosamine levels.ResultsA total of 156 patients were recruited, 61 on CSII and 95 on MDI. There was no difference in the rate of mild hypoglycemia <4.4 mmol/L (<80 mg/dL) (8.6% ± 6.1% in the CSII group and 9.85% ± 9.34% in the MDI group, P = 0.96). The mean rate of severe hypoglycemia <2.7 mmol/L (<50 mg/dL) was also not different in both groups (0.99% ± 1.7% in the CSII group compared to 1.7% ± 4.7% in the MDI group, P = 0.23). There was no difference in glycemic control as measured by fructosamine levels or the number of days that patients have to stop fasting. Glucose variability was significantly better in CSII group (SMBG; standard deviation [SD] 66.9 ± 15.3 vs. 76.9 ± 29.9, P = 0.02) (CGM; SD 68.1 ± 19.6 vs. 78.7 ± 24.9, P = 0.04). No diabetic ketoacidosis was reported in either group.ConclusionIn patients with T1DM who fast Ramadan, there was no difference in rates of hypoglycemia or hyperglycemia between CSII and MDI. However, CSII was associated with less glucose variability.

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