Unexpected Acute Hyperglycemia Following Pre-Surgical Discontinuation of SGLT2 Inhibitors in a Type 1 Diabetic Patient

Patient: Female, 47-year-old Final Diagnosis: Type 1 diabetes mellitus Symptoms: Hyperglycemia Clinical Procedure: — Specialty: Endocrinology and Metabolic OBJECTIVE: Unusual or unexpected effect of treatment BACKGROUND: Sodium-glucose transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors serve as adjuncts in managing type 1 diabetes. Preoperative guidelines suggest discontinuing SGLT2 inhibitors to avoid associated adverse events. We report an unusual case of acute hyperglycemia following the discontinuation of SGLT2 inhibitors in a patient undergoing surgery, posing substantial challenges to glycemic control. CASE REPORT: A 47-year-old female with type 1 diabetes was hospitalized for benign thyroid tumor surgery. She discontinued her SGLT2 inhibitors a day after admission. Unexpectedly, her glycemic control worsened with her mean sensor glucose value spiking from 109 mg/dL on admission to 273.9 mg/dL five days post-discontinuation. Despite increasing insulin doses, glycemic control remained suboptimal. The glucose level improved to a mean sensor value of 160.4 mg/dL only after SGLT2 inhibitors were resumed three days post-surgery. CONCLUSIONS: This report highlights a case of acute hyperglycemia following preoperative discontinuation of SGLT2 inhibitors in a patient with type 1 diabetes. Such changes in glucose levels were captured using intermittent continuous glucose monitoring. Given the potential for similar cases during preoperative discontinuation of SGLT2 inhibitors, it is advisable to intensify bolus insulin administration, under continuous glucose monitoring, in patients discontinuing SGLT2 inhibitors before surgery.