Lower mean blood glucose during short‐term intensive insulin therapy is associated with long‐term glycemic remission in patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes: Evidence‐based recommendations for standardization

AIMS/INTRODUCTION: Optimal glycemic targets during short‐term intensive insulin therapy in patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes are not standardized. The present study was carried out to determine the optimal glycemic targets during therapy by analyzing the impacts of glucose levels on therapeutic outcomes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 95 individuals with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes were enrolled. Short‐term intensive insulin therapy was carried out using an insulin pump to achieve and maintain glycemic targets (fasting blood glucose ≤6.0 mmol/L, 2‐h postprandial blood glucose ≤7.8 mmol/L) for 14 days, with daily eight‐point capillary blood glucose profiles recorded. Patients were followed up for 1 year after discharge. RESULTS: In most participants, the mean blood glucose and glycemic excursion parameters during the therapy were controlled within the normal range. Mean blood glucose was independently associated with amelioration of acute insulin response (r = −0.25, P = 0.015) and 1‐year remission (odds ratio 0.12, 95% confidence interval 0.034–0.426), but negatively associated with more level 1 hypoglycemia (r = −0.34, P = 0.001), although major hypoglycemia was rare. Among mean blood glucose tertiles, patients in the middle (68.7%) and lower (75.0%) tertiles had a higher 1‐year remission rate compared with the upper tertile (32.3%, both P < 0.001), whereas only the middle tertile did not have increased hypoglycemia compared with the upper tertile (8.1 ± 5.4 vs 7.2 ± 3.9 events/person, P = 0.48). CONCLUSIONS: Stricter glycemic control during short‐term intensive insulin therapy produced more remission despite self‐manageable hypoglycemia. Based on glycemic parameters in the middle mean tertile, we propose new glycemic targets that are approximately 0.4 mmol/L lower than current the targets, as long‐term benefit outweighs short‐term risks.