Clinical Case Study

Delayed hypoglycemia following exercise in an athletic teenager with type 1 diabetes

Andrea Urban, Miladys Palau Collazo, William V Tamborlane

Diabetic Hypoglycemia June 2013, Volume 6, Issue 1: page 11-13

Abstract

People with type 1 diabetes face certain challenges when participating in regular exercise activities, which place them at higher risk of experiencing severe hypoglycemia (SH). It is known that most SH occurs at night and that such events are more frequent after a day of increased physical activity. This phenomenon can result from increased peripheral glucose utilization by exercise, impaired counter-regulatory hormone responses in people with type 1 diabetes, and plasma insulin concentrations that remain unchanged because of basal insulin replacement. Steps that can be taken by people using an insulin pump to minimize the risk of nocturnal hypoglycemia after antecedent afternoon exercise are discussed.

Keywords: type 1 diabetes, hypoglycemia, severe hypoglycemia, exercise, insulin pump