Factors associated with prolonged length of stay in patients admitted with severe hypoglycaemia to a tertiary care hospital

• Published in: Endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism Vol. 2; no. 3; pp. e00062 - n/a
• Main Authors: Chua, Jia Min, Lim, Weiying, Bee, Yong Mong, Goh, Su‐Yen, Edmund Chan Tick, Chia, Andrew Tan Xia, Huang, Wee, Zongwen, Xin, Xiaohui, Ang, Li Chang, Heng, Wee May, Teh, Ming Ming
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.07.2019; John Wiley and Sons Inc; Wiley
• Subjects: Comorbidity; Diabetes; diabetes complications; hypoglycaemia; Hypoglycemia; Insulin; Mortality; Original; Patients; Singapore; hypoglycaemia; diabetes complications
• ISSN: 2398-9238; 2398-9238
• DOI: 10.1002/edm2.62

Summary Severe hypoglycaemia carries considerable morbidity and potential mortality. We aim to elucidate the factors which were associated with a prolonged length of stay (LOS) among patients with diabetes who were admitted to the hospital with severe hypoglycaemia. Three hundred and four patients were included in the analysis, with a mean age of 70.6 ± 11.3 years, mean glycated haemoglobin of 6.9 ± 1.3% and median LOS of 3 days. Patients with a LOS >3 days had significantly higher Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) (4.9 ± 2.1 vs 4.1 ± 2.1, P < 0.01), a lower glomerular filtration rate (GFR) (34.6 ± 31.4 mL/min vs 44.8 ± 28.9 mL/min, P = 0.01) and a higher proportion of these patients suffered from recurrent hypoglycaemia during the admission (38.9% vs 27.7%, P = 0.04). In addition, they had higher white cell counts (11.1 ± 4.8 × 109/L vs 9.3 ± 3.2 × 109/L) and lower albumin concentrations (32.9 ± 6.6 g/L vs 36.8 ± 4.9 g/L). Bivariate analysis showed that the same factors were associated with prolonged LOS. Identification of risk factors associated with prolonged LOS provides the opportunity for intervention to reduce the LOS and improve the outcomes for these patients. Severe hypoglycaemia carries considerable morbidity and potential mortality. We identified factors which were associated with a prolonged length of stay among the patients with diabetes who were admitted to the hospital with severe hypoglycaemia.