Improving Planning for Transition to Adult Care in a Pediatric Diabetes Clinic.

Quality Improvement Success Stories are published by the American Diabetes Association in collaboration with the American College of Physicians and the National Diabetes Education Program. This series is intended to highlight best practices and strategies from programs and clinics that have successfully improved the quality of care for people with diabetes or related conditions. Each article in the series is reviewed and follows a standard format developed by the editors of Clinical Diabetes. The following article describes efforts at a large midwestern pediatric health system to improve planning for patients' transition from pediatric to adult diabetes care settings.

Pediatric Medicaid Patients With Type 1 Diabetes Benefit From Continuous Glucose Monitor Technology.

BACKGROUND: We determined the uptake rate of continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and examined associations of clinical and demographic characteristics with CGM use among patients with type 1 diabetes covered by Colorado Medicaid during the first two years of CGM coverage with no out-of-pocket cost. METHOD: We retrospectively reviewed data from 892 patients with type 1 diabetes insured by Colorado Medicaid (Colorado Health Program [CHP] and CHP+, Colorado Medicaid expansion). Demographics, insulin pump usage, CGM usage, and hemoglobin A1c (A1c) were extracted from the medical record. Data downloaded into CGM software at clinic appointments were reviewed to determine 30-day use prior to appointments. Subjects with some exposure to CGM were compared to subjects never exposed to CGM, and we examined the effect of CGM use on glycemic control. RESULTS: Twenty percent of subjects had some exposure to CGM with a median of 22 [interquartile range 8, 29] days wear. Sixty one percent of CGM users had >85% sensor wear. Subjects using CGM were more likely to be younger (P < .001), have shorter diabetes duration (P < .001), and be non-Hispanic White (P < .001) than nonusers. After adjusting for age and diabetes duration, combined pump and CGM users had a lower A1c than those using neither technology (P = .006). Lower A1c was associated with greater CGM use (P = .002) and increased percent time in range (P < .001). CONCLUSION: Pediatric Medicaid patients successfully utilized CGM. Expansion of Medicaid coverage for CGM may help improve glycemic control and lessen disparities in clinical outcomes within this population.

Use of Successive Pharmacologic Hormone Suppression Testing for a Severe Presentation of Adolescent Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: A Case Report.

BACKGROUND: Pathological causes of acne and hirsutism include polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), congenital adrenal hyperplasia, and adrenal or ovarian tumors. PCOS is largely a clinical diagnosis and often simple laboratory testing can rule out more severe pathology. In more severe cases, determination of the correct diagnosis can require hormone suppression testing. In this article, we present a full sequence of hormone suppression testing and workup necessary to arrive at the ultimate diagnosis. CASE PRESENTATION: A 12-year-old normal weight (body mass index = 29th percentile), premenarchal female with Tanner III breast, Tanner V pubic hair presented with a 2.5-year history of severe hirsutism (Ferriman-Gallwey Score of 22), clitoromegaly, and deep voice. Successive hormone suppression and testing (ACTH stimulation testing, ovarian and adrenal imaging, dexamethasone-suppressed ACTH stimulation testing, and oral contraceptive therapy) was necessary to rule out congenital adrenal hyperplasia or a tumor and confirm PCOS. Metabolic testing, completed only after diagnosing PCOS, demonstrated insulin resistance. CONCLUSIONS: This patient had an extreme presentation of a common disorder. Her premenarchal status, elevated androgens, and virilization raised concern for non-PCOS pathology requiring sequential pharmacological hormone suppression testing and imaging for accurate diagnosis and appropriate treatment. The testing presented here is not novel, but we present the full sequence of testing and clinical results. This full sequence is rarely necessary for accurate diagnosis given clinical presentation and initial evaluation and, therefore, to our knowledge, has not been published. All providers caring for patients with PCOS should be familiar with this testing and its interpretation for severe cases that warrant extra attention.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in obese adolescent females is associated with multi-tissue insulin resistance and visceral adiposity markers.

OBJECTIVE: Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with insulin resistance (IR) and visceral adiposity in adults and boys, but girls with NAFLD are understudied. We sought to evaluate adipose, liver, and skeletal muscle insulin sensitivity in obese adolescent females with or without hepatic steatosis (HS) (intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content >5.5%) along with cardiometabolic components typically associated with IR. STUDY DESIGN: 73 obese adolescent girls at high risk for NAFLD were enrolled. Participants underwent fasting labs, an MRI to measure IHTG and visceral fat, 31phosphorous MR spectroscopy for muscle mitochondrial function, 1H MR spectroscopy for intramyocellular lipid (IMCL), bicycle ergometry to assess VO2peak and a 4-phase hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp with isotope tracers to measure hepatic and peripheral IR. 29 participants had HS [age 15 yrs(13,16), BMI%ile 98.7(97.4,99.0), IHTG 10.4%(8.0,13.5)] and 44 did not [age 15 yrs(13,17), BMI%ile 98.5(96.2,99.0), IHTG 2.0%(1.1,3.0)]. RESULTS: During hyperinsulinemia, participants with HS vs. non-HS had failure to suppress free fatty acids (p = 0.008), endogenous glucose release (p = 0.002), and a lower glucose metabolic rate of disappearance (Rd) (p = 0.012). Girls with NALFD also had higher visceral fat (p < 0.001), systolic blood pressure (p = 0.026), triglycerides (p = 0.02), ALT (p < 0.01) and white blood cell count (p < 0.01), and lower adiponectin (p = 0.02). There was no difference between girls with and without HS in systemic glycerol turnover measured with glycerol release, or in IMCL, mitochondrial function or VO2peak. CONCLUSIONS: Obese adolescent girls with HS have evidence of multi-tissue IR, visceral adiposity, inflammation and multiple components of the metabolic syndrome, arguing for close cardiometabolic surveillance over time of girls with HS.