Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Blood sugar changes after insulin in healthy and diabetic cats
By Zini, Eric et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2018·Clinic for Small Animal Internal Medicine·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Glucose concentrations after insulin-induced hypoglycemia and glycemic variability in healthy and diabetic cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of diabetic cats were monitored for blood sugar levels after receiving insulin, and it was found that 25% of them experienced a spike in blood sugar after a drop (known as post-hypoglycemic hyperglycemia). This was more common in cats whose diabetes was not well managed, as they had higher insulin doses and greater fluctuations in their blood sugar levels. Healthy cats did not show this spike after insulin treatment. This information can help veterinarians better manage insulin treatments for diabetic cats to avoid these dangerous fluctuations.
People also search for: cat diabetes management · insulin treatment for diabetic cats · why is my cat's blood sugar fluctuating
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Little information is available about posthypoglycemic hyperglycemia (PHH) in diabetic cats, and a causal link between hypoglycemia and subsequent hyperglycemia is not clear. Fluctuations in blood glucose concentrations might only represent high glycemic variability. HYPOTHESIS: Insulin induces PHH in healthy cats, and PHH is associated with poorly regulated diabetes and increased glycemic variability in diabetic cats. ANIMALS: Six healthy cats, 133 diabetic cats. METHODS: Insulin (protamine-zinc and degludec; 0.1-0.3 IU/kg) administered to healthy cats. Blood glucose curves were generated with portable glucose meter to determine the percentage of curves with PHH. Data from insulin-treated diabetic cats with blood glucose curves showing hypoglycemia included data of cats with and without PHH. Post-hypoglycemic hyperglycemia was defined as blood glucose concentrations <4 mmol/L followed by blood glucose concentrations >15 mmol/L within 12 hours. Glycemic variability was calculated as the standard deviation of the blood glucose concentrations. RESULTS: In healthy cats, all insulin doses caused hypoglycemia but PHH was not observed; glycemic variability did not differ between insulin preparations. Among diabetic cats with hypoglycemia, 33 (25%) had PHH. Compared with cats without PHH, their daily insulin dose was higher (1.09 ± 0.55 versus 0.65 ± 0.56 IU/kg; P < .001), serum fructosamine concentration was higher (565 ± 113 versus 430 ± 112 µmol/L; P < .001), remission was less frequent (10% versus 56%; P < .001), and glycemic variability was larger (8.1 ± 2.4 mmol/L versus 2.9 ± 2.2 mmol/L; P < .001). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Insulin-induced hypoglycemia did not cause PHH in healthy cats but it occurred in 25% of diabetic cats with hypoglycemia, particularly when diabetes was poorly controlled. Glycemic variability was increased in cats with PHH.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29603806/