Post-Transplant Diabetes Mellitus (PTDM) affects 20%–40% of lung transplant recipients within five years, impacting rejection, infection, cardiovascular events, and mortality. Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) is used in diabetes but not well-studied in PTDM.
This study assessed CGM performance in detecting hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia post-lung transplantation, compared to self-monitoring blood glucose.
A prospective pilot study included 15 lung transplant patients (mean age 58.6 years; 53.3% men; 73.3% with pre-transplantation diabetes) managing hyperglycemia with insulin. Patients used a blinded CGM and self-monitored glucose for ten days. Data were categorized (% time in range, % high, % very high, % low, % very low) and compared using paired t-tests.
CGM showed superior hyperglycemia detection. Mean differences for “% very high”, “% high”, and “% high and % very high” were 7.12 (95% CI, 1.8–12.4), 11.1 (95% CI, 3.5–18.8), and 18.3 (95% CI: 7.37–29.24), respectively. No significant difference was found for “% low and % very low”. All patients reported a positive CGM experience.
CGM use post-lung transplantation seems feasible and offers advantages in detecting hyperglycemia and in optimizing glucose management. Study limitations include a small sample size, requiring larger studies to assess glycemic control, hypoglycemia detection, and transplant outcomes.