Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems have been available for patient use since 1999 and realtime continuous glucose monitoring (RT-CGM) systems have been available since 2006.1 The early systems were blinded and used as a tool by diabetes clinicians for diagnostic purposes (diagnosis of hypo- and hyperglycemia) and to get a more complete picture of a patient’s blood sugar trends over several consecutive days.
Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems have been available for patient use since 1999 and realtime continuous glucose monitoring (RT-CGM) systems have been available since 2006.1 The early systems were blinded and used as a tool by diabetes clinicians for diagnostic purposes (diagnosis of hypo- and hyperglycemia) and to get a more complete picture of a patient’s blood sugar trends over several consecutive days. Data on glucose values, measured every five minutes in the interstitial fluid, could be reviewed only after they had been downloaded from the CGM device onto a computer. Since then, newer systems have been developed and improved upon, and are becoming increasingly accepted by patients with type 1 diabetes. Blinded CGM systems still exist in updated versions (e.g., Medtronic’s iPro®) and are used for diagnostic and research purposes. However, the advent of RT-CGM allows patients to see their own glucose values and trends in realtime and intervene as necessary.
Currently, people with type 1 diabetes of all ages use RT-CGM, which helps them optimize their glycemic control. By having RT-CGM information on glucose levels every one to five minutes, patients and parents/care-givers are able to make more educated decisions when adjusting insulin, activity, and food intake. It enables them to have more control over their own or their child’s diabetes. Many studies have been done to evaluate the efficacy and benefits of RT-CGM, although few have specific information regarding RT-CGM use and benefits in children and adolescents.2
It can be challenging to maintain euglycemia in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes due to their eating habits, growing and changing bodies, erratic schedules, still developing cognitive systems, inability to manage their diabetes on their own, and presence of multiple care-givers. RT-CGM systems can be used in this group of patients to more closely monitor their varying glucose levels and help them achieve good glycemic control. Previously, studies of patients with type 1 diabetes using CGM did not show the same benefits in the younger population as in adults.3–5 However, recent reports have found benefits of using RT-CGM in youth.6–10 RT-CGM use in children and adolescents has increased, but it is still not as wide as in adults.
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