Usefulness of the long-acting insulin analogue glargine in basal-bolus therapy for Japanese children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of long-acting insulin analogue glargine (G) changing from NPH in basal-bolus therapy for Japanese children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM1). Thirty patients (11 M, 19 F) with DM1 aged 13.3 +/- 4.5 years were included in the study. Mean fasting blood glucose level was significantly decreased (baseline: 142.5 +/- 39.3 vs 127.1 +/- 24.0, 129.0 +/- 29.1, 121.1 +/- 26.0 mg/dl at 3, 6, 12 months, respectively, p <0.01), and mean HbA(1c) was significantly decreased (baseline: 8.06 +/- 0.85 vs 7.69 +/- 0.89, 7.57 +/- 0.93, 7.36 +/- 0.95%, at 3, 6, 12 months, respectively, p <0.01) after changing to G from NPH. Severe hypoglycemia rarely occurred during the study period. In conclusion, basal-bolus therapy using G resulted in improved overall glycemic control with a low risk of severe hypoglycemia in Japanese pediatric patients with DM1.