title: [Glycemic control in diabetic patients hospitalized in a non-critical care hospital setting].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  During hospitalization, hyper and hypoglycemia impairs the prognosis of diabetic patients. Strict glycemic control improves survival in intensive care units. There is no evidence to support it for patients in non-critical wards.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the glycemic control of diabetic patients in a non-critical medical unit, and estimate its effect on hospitalization and survival.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective study of all patients admitted to a non-critical ward with a fasting blood glucose (BG) > 126 mg/dl or > 200 mg /dl at any time, and patients with known diabetes. Age, sex, type of diabetes, time since diagnosis, chronic complications, prior treatment, length of stay, admission and discharge diagnosis were registered. All capillary BG levels obtained from each patient until discharge, death or transfer, were registered.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Ninety nine patients aged 63 ± 13.4 years (42 males,) were included. Ninety one percent had a type 2 diabetes with a mean duration of 13.8 years. Mean hospital stay was 10.9 days. At least one hypoglycemia below 70 mg/dl occurred in 21% of patients and 39.4% had at least one episode with blood glucose over 300 mg/dl. Median hospital stay of patients with no episode of BG > 200 mg/dl was 6 days, 10.5 days among patients with at least one episode of BG > 300 mg/dl and 13 days among patients that had at least one episode of hypoglycemia (p = 0.02). Diabetes lasted nine years more among the latter (p < 0.01). Three patients that suffered hypoglycemia and two in the rest of the groups, died (NS).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Two of three diabetic patients admitted to our non-critical medical ward have a non-optimal glycemic control. Appearance of hypoglycemia is associated with a longer hospital stay.
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Endocrinología y Diabetes, Servicio de Medicina Interna, Departamento de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile. ivansolis@med.uchile.cl
authors.forename: Iván
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Solís
authors.forename: Natalia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hurtado
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Demangel
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cortés
authors.forename: Néstor
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Soto
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis*; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000097:blood*; D005260:Female; D038321:Glycemic Index; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose