Insulin resistance is not exhibited by advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients.

We have previously reported increased blood glucose concentrations and skeletal muscle glycogen depletion in severe COPD patients with chronic respiratory failure. In order to see if insulin resistance exists in severe COPD, we investigated nine patients with advanced COPD with chronic hypoxaemia and seven healthy control subjects of similar age, using the euglycaemic hyperinsulinaemic glucose clamp technique. We could not demonstrate a subnormal intravenous glucose requirement in response to insulin when maintaining euglycaemia in the COPD patients with chronic hypoxaemia. This indicates that the net metabolism of glucose in COPD patients with chronic hypoxaemia is not resistant to insulin.