FOR THE WISCONSIN DIABETES REGISTRY PROJECTOBJECTIVE -To determine the risk of frequent and severe hypoglycemia and the associated demographic and clinical risk factors.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS -Demographic and diabetes self-management factors were measured in 415 subjects followed prospectively for 4 -6.5 years of type 1 diabetes duration as participants in a population-based incident cohort. Blood samples were collected up to three times yearly to test glycosylated hemoglobin (GHb) levels. Reports of frequent (2-4 times/week) and severe (lost consciousness) hypoglycemia as well as other diabetes selfmanagement data were collected by questionnaires.RESULTS -Frequent hypoglycemia was common (33 and 35% of participants reported this on the 4-and 6.5-year questionnaires, respectively), whereas severe hypoglycemia occurred much less often. Better glycemic control (odds ratio [OR] 1.3 per 2% decrease in GHb, 95% CI 1.1-1.5) and more frequent self-monitored blood glucose (1.5 per blood glucose check, 1.3-1.7) were independently related to frequent hypoglycemia. The association of frequent hypoglycemia with intensive insulin therapy increased with age. Better glycemic control (1.5 per 2% decrease in GHb, 1.2-2.0) and older age were related to severe hypoglycemic reactions. No sociodemographic factors other than age increased the risk of hypoglycemia.CONCLUSIONS -Frequent hypoglycemia was common in a population representing the full range of glycemic control in the community. Intensive insulin management and blood glucose monitoring independently predicted frequent but not severe hypoglycemia. This information may be useful for updating patients such that minor changes in diabetes management might decrease the daily burden of this condition while maintaining intensive insulin therapy.
Diabetes Care 24:1878 -1881, 2001H ypoglycemia is the most common acute complication of type 1 diabetes (1). Onset is usually rapid, and symptoms range from very mild to severe enough to cause brain damage or death (2,3). Results of the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT) (4) increased emphasis on intensive insulin treatment but also drew attention to the accompanying risk of hypoglycemia with such therapy, particularly in adolescents.The frequency of and risk factors for moderate and/or severe hypoglycemia in young adults were described in studies conducted in clinic-or hospital-based samples (5-8), the DCCT (9), one national cross-sectional study from France, and a limited number of populationbased cohort studies (10 -12). From these studies, it is clear that a history of hypoglycemia (6,9,13) and intensive insulin therapy (9) is an important predictor.Findings regarding other factors such as age, sex, duration of diabetes, and glycemic control are not consistent across studies. The frequency of all levels of hypoglycemia has not been reported. Also, no large population-based cohort has been studied prospectively to determine the relationship of both intensive insulin therapy and glycemic control to frequent and severe hy...