Experience with real time continuous glucose monitoring in stabilising fluctuating glycaemia during intensive care of the preterm infant of a diabetic mother

Abstract

Objective: The newborns of diabetic mothers suffer from perinatal complications more frequently than the newborns of healthy women.

Methods: We used for 7 days a real time continuous glucose monitoring system (RT-CGMS) to monitor glucose homeostasis and manage glucose administration in a premature newborn of a diabetic mother.

Results: The boy was born at 35 + 5 gestational weeks with typical signs of diabetic fetopathy. RT-CGMS revealed 2 late hypoglycaemia episodes on the 2nd and 4th days. The sensor readings correlated well with glycaemia measured in the laboratory (r = 0.908, p = 0.005). To support conclusions of this case report, we attached the data of five other preterm newborns of diabetic mothers who were later successfully treated according to the RT-CGMS data as well.

Conclusions: This approach allows timely response to glycaemia instability and is applicable even in preterm infants.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus; fetopathy; glucose administration; glycaemia measurement; hypoglycaemia; newborn of a diabetic mother.