THURSDAY, Oct. 28 (HealthDay News) -- As individuals progress to type 1 diabetes, their glucose levels show wide fluctuations and gradually increase overall, though glucose fluctuations are not related to early C-peptide response, according to research published in the October issue of Diabetes.
Jay M. Sosenko, M.D., of the University of Miami, and colleagues analyzed data from 207 patients who progressed to type 1 diabetes. All had a baseline oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) and at least one other OGTT during follow-up.
The researchers found that 30 of the 135 patients with at least four OGTTs veered from normal OGTTs to dysglycemic OGTTs at least twice. The second normal OGTT had less "normalcy" than the first normal OGTT, the researchers write. Early C-peptide response declined as glucose levels increased. However, fluctuations in glucose weren't related to early C-peptide response, suggesting that changes in insulin sensitivity play a role in glucose fluctuations.
"We have previously shown that, on average, glucose levels increase over time with progression to type 1 diabetes. However, the data in this report suggest that within the individual, glucose levels do not necessarily increase in a simple, linear manner; rather there can be wide fluctuations that occur on a background of gradually increasing glucose levels. The overall picture can perhaps best be described as a kind of ratcheting," the authors write.
