Frequency of Hypoglycemic Episodes in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes After Medication Changes at Hospital Discharge: A Retrospective Cohort Analysis

Hypoglycemia is associated with an increased risk of emergency room visits, rate of hospitalizations, and lower quality of life. Recommendations given to patients with diabetes mellitus at hospital discharge provide an opportunity to improve long-term glycemic control but may increase the short-term risk of hypoglycemia. In this retrospective study, we investigated the hypoglycemic events occurring within three months following hospitalization for common medical conditions in 693 patients with type 2 diabetes. We examined whether the recommendations for diabetes treatment given at discharge are linked with these events. We found that patients recommended to modify their home diabetes treatment had a higher rate of hypoglycemia of any severity than those discharged without change (p=0.003). We conclude that individualized discharge treatment plans, frequent follow-ups, and continuous glucose monitoring for high-risk patients are recommended to prevent hypoglycemic events.