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Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis in the pre-diabetes stage: a systematic review

Abstract

Objective:

To elucidate whether insulin is effective or not in patients with cystic fibrosis before the diabetes mellitus phase.

Data source:

The study was performed according to the Prisma method between August and September 2014, using the PubMed, Embase, Lilacs and SciELO databases. Prospective studies published in English, Portuguese and Spanish from 2002 to 2014, evaluating the effect of insulin on weight parameters, body mass index and pulmonary function in patients with cystic fibrosis, with a mean age of 17.37 years before the diabetes mellitus phase were included.

Data synthesis:

Eight articles were identified that included 180 patients undergoing insulin use. Sample size ranged from 4 to 54 patients, with a mean age ranging from 12.4 to 28 years. The type of follow-up, time of insulin use, the dose and implementation schedule were very heterogeneous between studies.

Conclusions:

There are theoretical reasons to believe that insulin has a beneficial effect in the studied population. The different methods and populations assessed in the studies do not allow us to state whether early insulin therapy should or should not be carried out in patients with cystic fibrosis prior to the diagnosis of diabetes. Therefore, studies with larger samples and insulin use standardization are required.

KEYWORDS
Cystic fibrosis; Insulin; Diabetes mellitus

Resumo

Objetivo:

Elucidar se a insulina é eficaz ou não em pacientes com fibrose cística antes da fase de diabetes.

Fontes de dados:

O estudo foi feito de acordo com o método Prisma entre agosto e setembro de 2014, nas bases de dados PubMed, Embase, Lilacs e SciELO. Foram incluídos estudos prospectivos publicados em inglês, português e espanhol de 2002 a 2014 que avaliaram o efeito da insulina nos parâmetros peso, índice de massa corporal e função pulmonar, em pacientes com fibrose cística, com média de 17,37 anos, antes da fase de diabetes.

Síntese dos dados:

Foram identificados oito artigos que incluíram 180 indivíduos submetidos ao uso de insulina. O tamanho das amostras variou de 4 a 54 pacientes, idade média entre 12,4 e 28 anos. O tipo de acompanhamento, o tempo de uso de insulina, a dose e o cronograma de implementação foram muito heterogêneos entre os estudos.

Conclusões:

Existem razões teóricas para se acreditar que a insulina tenha um efeito benéfico na população estudada. Os diferentes métodos e populações encontrados não permitem afirmar se a terapia precoce com insulina deve ou não ser feita em pacientes com fibrose cística previamente ao diagnóstico de diabetes. Portanto, são necessários estudos com amostras maiores e uniformidade de uso da insulina.

PALAVRAS-CHAVE
Fibrose cística; Insulina; Diabetes melito

Introduction

Cystic fibrosis-related diabetes (CFRD) is the most common comorbidity in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and affects 20% of adolescents and 40-50% of adults with CF.11 Moran A, Dunitz J, Nathan B, Saeed A, Holme B, Thomas W. Cystic fibrosis-related diabetes: current trends in prevalence, incidence, and mortality. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1626-31.

Glucose disorders in CF patients typically begin with an intermittent postprandial hyperglycemia, followed by oral glucose intolerance without fasting hyperglycemia and finally diabetes with fasting hyperglycemia.22 Lombardo F, De Luca F, Rosano M, Sferlazzas C, Lucanto C, Arrigo T, et al. Natural history of glucose tolerance, beta-cell function and peripheral insulin sensitivity in cystic fibrosis patients with fasting euglycemia. Eur J Endocrinol. 2003;149:53-9.,33 Moran A, Becker D, Casella SJ, Gottlieb PA, Kirkman MS, Marshall BC, et al. Epidemiology, pathophysiology, and prognostic implications of cystic fibrosis-related diabetes: a technical review. Diabetes Care. 2010;33:2677-83.

Insulin deficiency and resulting hyperglycemia affect lung disease.33 Moran A, Becker D, Casella SJ, Gottlieb PA, Kirkman MS, Marshall BC, et al. Epidemiology, pathophysiology, and prognostic implications of cystic fibrosis-related diabetes: a technical review. Diabetes Care. 2010;33:2677-83.

4 Rolon MA, Benali K, Munck A, Navarro J, Clement A, Tubiana-Rufi N, et al. Cystic fibrosis-related diabetes mellitus: clinical impact of prediabetes and effects of insulin therapy. Acta Paediatr. 2001;90:860-7.
-55 Brennan AL, Gyi KM, Wood DM, Johnson J, Holliman R, Baines DL, et al. Airway glucose concentrations and effect on growth of respiratory pathogens in cystic fibrosis. J Cyst Fibros. 2007;6:101-9. Insulin is a hormone with anabolic effects and its deficiency may have a negative clinical impact on patients considered "prediabetic".66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. Increased serum glucose levels (≥144mg/dL) may have an adverse effect on lung function. Furthermore, increased glucose in the bronchial tree favors the growth of respiratory pathogens.55 Brennan AL, Gyi KM, Wood DM, Johnson J, Holliman R, Baines DL, et al. Airway glucose concentrations and effect on growth of respiratory pathogens in cystic fibrosis. J Cyst Fibros. 2007;6:101-9. There is still a loss of lean body mass due to the catabolic state caused by insulin deficiency, which leads to a consumption of fat and proteins and also affects pulmonary function.77 Rafii M, Chapman K, Stewart C, Kelly E, Hanna A, Wilson DC, et al. Changes in response to insulin and the effects of varying glucose tolerance on whole-body protein metabolism in patients with cystic fibrosis. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005;81:421-6.

Therefore, insulin deficiency promotes a clinical deterioration in this population and not only an abnormal glucose metabolism, which may be enhanced by early intervention with insulin.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. Both diabetes and glucose intolerance reduce the life expectancy of CF patients; insulin is the only treatment that improves clinical outcomes.88 Alexander S, Alshafi K, Anderson AK, Balfour-Lynn I, SiânBentley, Buchdahl R, et al. Clinical guidelines: care of children with cystic fibrosis - 2014. 6th ed; 2014. Available from: www.rbth.nhs.uk/childrencf www.rbth.nhs.uk/childrencf [cited 19.10.15].
www.rbth.nhs.uk/childrencf...
Early treatment with insulin may reduce the morbidity and mortality of the underlying disease.99 Lanng S, Thorsteinsson B, Nerup J, Koch C. Diabetes mellitus in cystic fibrosis: effect of insulin therapy on lung function and infections. Acta Paediatr. 1994;83:849-53.,1010 Merjaneh L, He Q, Long Q, Phillips LS, Stecenko AA. Disposition index identifies defective beta-cell function in cystic fibrosis subjects with normal glucose tolerance. J Cyst Fibros. 2015. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1569199314001532 http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1569199314001532 [cited 08.11.14].:.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/art...

Moreover, CF patients' classification using the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in intolerant and diabetic patients is based on criteria derived from epidemiological studies in non-CF subjects, it raises doubts whether these conventional diagnostic limits would be appropriate or relevant for CF patients.1111 Lek N, Acerini CL. Cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus - diagnostic and management challenges. Curr Diabetes Rev. 2010;6:9-16. Thus, the use of conventional glucose evaluation tests in the CF population could underestimate the number of patients with abnormal glucose metabolism, and, consequently, this group could benefit from early intervention with insulin, in glucose levels below those considered abnormal in populations without cystic fibrosis.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82.

To our knowledge, there is no systematic review of early initiation of insulin therapy in CF patients. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify the effects of this intervention and contribute to clinical practice and future studies.

Method

The search process was developed according to the Prisma method (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses).1313 Liberati A, Altman DG, Tetzlaff J, Mulrow C, Gøtzsche PC, Ioannidis JP, et al. The Prisma statement for reporting systematic reviews and meta-analyses of studies that evaluate healthcare interventions: explanation and elaboration. PLoS Med. 2009;6:e1000100. The search was conducted between August and September 2014 in the following electronic databases: PubMed, Lilacs, SciELO, and Excerpta Medica Database (Embase).

The following terms and descriptors (Medical Subjects Headings - MeSH) were used for the search: 'cystic fibrosis', 'early insulin', 'insulin', 'body mass index', 'impaired glucose tolerance', and 'therapy'; in combinations: 'cystic fibrosis and early insulin', 'cystic fibrosis and insulin and body mass index', 'cystic fibrosis and early insulin', 'cystic fibrosis and insulin and body mass index', 'impaired glucose tolerance and cystic fibrosis and insulin and therapy'.

Studies published between 2002 and 2014 were identified through electronic search by two independent reviewers who evaluated the titles and abstracts of articles. References of selected articles were also reviewed in order to identify studies not found in the surveyed bases. Discrepancies between reviewers were discussed and resolved by consensus. The date of the first search was August 28, 2014, and the last, September 22, 2014.

Inclusion criteria were: (I) original articles; (II) prospective studies; (III) articles in English, Spanish or Portuguese; (IV) cystic fibrosis diagnosis; (V) glucose disorders; (VI) insulin use (regardless of type, dose, or implementation schedule); (VII) evaluation of the results in clinical parameters (weight or height or body mass index and pulmonary function). Glucose disorder was considered as an OGTT non-characterized as diabetes by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) criteria and OGTT glucose values above 140mg/dL at any time, except at baseline and 120min; or postprandial glucose random or above 200mg/dL; or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) diagnosis by ADA criteria.1414 Moran A, Brunzell C, Cohen RC, Katz M, Marshall BC, Onady G, et al. Clinical care guidelines for cystic fibrosis-related diabetes: a position statement of the American Diabetes Association and a clinical practice guideline of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, endorsed by the Pediatric Endocrine Society. Diabetes Care. 2010;33:2697-708.

Exclusion criteria were: (I) non-original articles, such as letters, conference proceedings and editorials; (II) studies evaluated only CFRD without other types of disorders of glucose.

The extracted data were: study design; sample size; population characteristics; follow-up time; type of insulin therapy (including dose and regime used); and effects on weight, body mass index, and lung function.

Results

The initial search identified 508 articles, of which 111 were selected based on titles and abstracts. References of selected papers were also reviewed and an additional study was included. Of these, 80 were identified as duplicates and removed; thus, 32 articles were read in full, of which 24 were excluded by the exclusion criteria. The final selection consisted of eight items (Fig. 1). Characteristics of the study results are summarized in Table 1.

Figure 1
Flowchart of study identification with inclusions and exclusions (cystic fibrosis-related diabetes - *CFRD).

Table 1
Characteristics of included studies.

Sample size of the included studies ranged from 4 to 54 patients, with mean age from 12.4 to 28 years. Investigators and subjects were not blind to the treatment assignment in any of the studies.

Type of follow-up, insulin time, dose, and implementation schedule were very heterogeneous, which can be seen in Table 1 . Three studies used control groups to compare the effects of insulin. Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. selected corresponding controls who underwent other types of intervention (repaglinide or placebo), while Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. used controls with IGT and Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. used controls with normal OGTT by ADA criteria (NGT). In these last two studies, controls did not undergo pharmacological interventions.

Inclusion criteria for studies were very heterogeneous. Mozzillo et al.1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7. used the following inclusion criteria: no use of systemic corticosteroids and no exacerbation of lung disease. Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. included patients with at least one of the following conditions: (I) body mass index BMI<10th percentile (p10); (II) loss of one BMI percentile for age and sex in the previous year; (III) forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) ≤80% of predicted; and (IV) decreased FEV1≥10% in the previous year. Lung function deterioration and weight loss were also criteria for inclusion of subjects in the study by Dobson et al.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. In contrast, Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. chose to intervene in a more clinically stable group of patients and used the following inclusion criteria: (I) end of linear growth; (II) weight stability in the last three months; (III) absence of acute infection in the last two months. Exclusion criteria for this study were: (I) use of oral or intravenous corticosteroids in the last six months; (II) fasting hyperglycemia in the previous year; (III) liver dysfunction; (IV) pregnancy. Early insulin deficiency, diagnosed by intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT) and/or high levels of glucose in OGTT, was used as inclusion criteria in the studies by Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. and Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7.

Five studies evaluated the effects of insulin in BMI of CF patients.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8.

16 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202.

17 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54.
-1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7.,2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. Bizzarri et al.,2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. Moran et al.,1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. and Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. demonstrated a significant increase in BMI after insulin intervention. Mozillo et al.1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7. found a significant increase in BMI only in patients with initial BMI Z-score <-1. Although Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. identify improvements in BMI in the group as a whole, in particular IGT group they did not notice a significant increase in this parameter. Dobson et al.,66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. Drummond et al.,1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. and Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. chose to assess body weight. Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. and Drummond et al.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. found significant weight gain after insulin intervention, while Dobson et al.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. suggested this trend, as data were not statistically evaluated.

FEV1 was the only clinical parameter assessed by all studies. Bizzarri et al.,2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. Mozzillo et al.,1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7. and Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. found a significant increase in FEV1 after the use of insulin. Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. found that, at the end of follow-up, intervention group had higher FEV1 compared to control group. Dobson et al.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. showed an apparent increase in this parameter with the use of insulin, as it was only a case report. In studies by Moran et al.,1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. Drummond et al.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. and Minicucci et al.,1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. FEV1 remained unchanged after the intervention. But Drummond et al.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. evaluated separately only patients diagnosed with IGT and found a significant reduction in FEV1 decline rate in patients using insulin. Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. evaluated separately only the early insulin-deficient patients (excluding patients with CFRD) and also found in this group a significant increase in FEV1. Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. reported a lower apparent decline in FEV1 in patients using insulin compared to placebo, but this stability was not statistically significant.

Mozzillo et al.1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7. found a reduced number of pulmonary exacerbations (as compared to the previous year), while Bizzarri et al.2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. found no changes in the number of hospitalizations for exacerbations. The four patients evaluated by Dobson et al.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. showed an increase in forced vital capacity (FVC) with the use of insulin. Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. found a significant improvement in FVC after the intervention.

In the results found by Bizzarri et al.,2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. there was no significant change in the levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) after insulin, whereas the group of patients evaluated by Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. showed a significant reduction in HbA1c with the use of insulin.

Frequent episodes of hypoglycaemia were reported only by Drummond et al.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. In the other studies cited in this review, the adverse effects of insulin therapy were infrequent and well tolerated.

Discussion

There are few published papers on the use of insulin in patients with cystic fibrosis prior to overt diabetes. Most are limited to a single center and mainly to adults. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic review to examine the benefits and risks of insulin use in CF patients before the diagnosis of diabetes.

Glucose intolerance indicates the presence of insulin deficiency, which leads to a protein consumption and negative clinical/nutritional impact. Therefore, early treatment of insulin can have a positive effect in CF patients in the prediabetic phase.2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4.

The study results make sense when considering the pathophysiology of the evolution to CFRD. Initially, there is an insulin deficiency that generates a protein catabolism and glycemic excursions, with consequent difficulty gaining and maintaining weight and worsening of lung function. Therefore, the introduction of insulin at this stage would likely prevent the catabolic effects of insulin deficiency.

Current data are clear about the insulin treatment for patients with CFRD with or without fasting hyperglycemia,1414 Moran A, Brunzell C, Cohen RC, Katz M, Marshall BC, Onady G, et al. Clinical care guidelines for cystic fibrosis-related diabetes: a position statement of the American Diabetes Association and a clinical practice guideline of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, endorsed by the Pediatric Endocrine Society. Diabetes Care. 2010;33:2697-708. but there are no consistent results to determine whether this treatment should also be used for those with other glucose disorders, as it is not well defined what are glucose disorders in this specific population. Moreover, there is doubt whether the cut-off values for the diagnosis of CFRD and IGT are valid for CF because they are based on population without the disease.

A negative impact of the prediabetic phase is described in nutritional status and pulmonary function of CF patients,66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1.,2121 Tofé S, Moreno JC, Máiz L, Alonso M, Escobar H, Barrio R. Insulin-secretion abnormalities and clinical deterioration related to impaired glucose tolerance in cystic fibrosis. Eur J Endocrinol Eur Fed Endocr Soc. 2005;152:241-7. it suggests that insulin should be started before the diagnosis of CFRD by the current methods available, as insulin has anabolic effects and these patients have few side effects (hypoglycemia). The only study reporting frequent episodes of hypoglycemia was the study by Drummond et al.,1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. but they included several insulin therapy regimens in patients with CFRD, IGT, and NGT, and there was no description of the insulin type or dose instruction for each group, which may be related to the difference in the frequency of hypoglycemia seen between studies.

Although most studies have a small sample size and used more than one type of insulin, only Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. and Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. reported no positive effects with early insulin therapy, but these studies have some peculiarities described below, suggesting that early initiation of insulin therapy in CF patients could be beneficial.

Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. reported no clinical improvement with the use of glargine in CF patients with IGT (ADA criteria). The authors assumed that participation in the study made patients more aware of their change in glucose metabolism, leading to better nutritional behavior. Most other studies66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1.,1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54.

18 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7.

19 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7.
-2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. showed positive results, but the insulin doses used were higher.

Mozzillo et al.1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7. found that after 12 months of therapy with insulin, BMI curve (Centers for Disease Control - CDC) improved in patients with baseline Z-score below -1, which is in agreement with the study by Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. that also reported improvement in BMI, regardless of the baseline Z-score.

Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. demonstrated that insulin administration has positive effects on lean body mass due to protein catabolism reversal. However, control group also showed a tendency towards that improvement, probably due to better nutritional orientation, as in both groups there was a recommendation for increased caloric intake up to 120-150% of the daily needs. According to the authors, the results support the concept that insulin deficiency, assessed in this study by using IVGTT and OGTT, leads to clinical deterioration in CF patients and that early initiation of insulin therapy could be recommended earlier than it is currently accepted (CFRD).

Dobson et al.,66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. Bizzarri et al.,2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. and Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. found weight improvement in patients using insulin.

Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. reported that insulin reverses weight loss in patients with CFRD without fasting hyperglycemia, but not in patients with severe IGT. However, the study population was in adulthood and there seems to be a better response when these individuals are in childhood and adolescence. Moreover, the group in question had severe IGT (OGTT≥200mg/dL at any time and 120min between 180 and 199mg/dL), and in other studies, patients were previously selected in severe IGT phase, which may explain the differences found in the results.

Bizarri et al.2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. found improved FEV1 with no reduction in pulmonary exacerbations. Mozzillo et al.1818 Mozzillo E, Franzese A, Valerio G, Sepe A, De Simone I, Mazzarella G, et al. One-year glargine treatment can improve the course of lung disease in children and adolescents with cystic fibrosis and early glucose derangements. Pediatr Diabetes. 2009;10:162-7. reported increased FEV1 and reduced pulmonary exacerbations with the use of insulin. Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. demonstrated a fall in FEV1 before starting treatment and improvement after the introduction of insulin. Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. and Drummond et al.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. assessed FEV1 compared to untreated subjects and identified a decline in lung function in control group, which was not seen in insulin-treated group. Moran et al.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8. and Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. found no improvement in FEV1 with early use of insulin. However, in the study by Minicucci et al.1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. there was a 10% decrease in FEV1 in the year prior to the intervention, which may be a bias because even CFRD patients have no such decline in this parameter. Koloušková et al.1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. and Drummond et al.1212 Drummond RS, Ross E, Bicknell S, Small M, Jones G. Insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis related diabetes mellitus: benefit, timing of initiation and hypoglycaemia. Pract Diabetes Int. 2011;28:177-82. , who had a more consistent number of cases, found that FEV1 was lower in the untreated group compared to those treated with insulin, which confirms the results described by Dobson et al.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. Bizarri et al.2020 Bizzarri C, Lucidi V, Ciampalini P, Bella S, Russo B, Cappa M. Clinical effects of early treatment with insulin glargine in patients with cystic fibrosis and impaired glucose tolerance. J Endocrinol Invest. 2006;29:RC1-4. , and Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7.

Dobson et al.66 Dobson L, Hattersley AT, Tiley S, Elworthy S, Oades PJ, Sheldon CD. Clinical improvement in cystic fibrosis with early insulin treatment. Arch Dis Child. 2002;87:430-1. suggest an improvement in pulmonary function (FEV1 and FVC) with the use of insulin. However, their sample size was small (n=4), selected by convenience, and had no control; the reevaluation occurred in a short period of time (3 months) without insulin standardization (more than one type of insulin was used) and there was no statistical analysis, probably due to the sample size.

Hameed et al.1919 Hameed S, Morton JR, Field PI, Belessis Y, Yoong T, Katz T, et al. Once daily insulin detemir in cystic fibrosis with insulin deficiency. Arch Dis Child. 2012;97:464-7. assessed height separately and found no differences after insulin therapy initiation. This is probably due to the result seen in another study by Bizzarri et al.2222 Bizzarri C, Montemitro E, Pedicelli S, Ciccone S, Majo F, Cappa M, et al. Glucose tolerance affects pubertal growth and final height of children with cystic fibrosis. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2015;50:144-9. They suggest that in the development of CFRD there is already substantial and irreversible impairment of height because most patients with CF develop diabetes at puberty, the same time that the growth spurt occurs.2222 Bizzarri C, Montemitro E, Pedicelli S, Ciccone S, Majo F, Cappa M, et al. Glucose tolerance affects pubertal growth and final height of children with cystic fibrosis. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2015;50:144-9.

The evidence, favorable or unfavorable, to the use of insulin before overt diabetes in CF patients remains inconclusive, with little knowledge about long-term results. There are few prospective studies on the use of insulin before overt diabetes in patients with CF and they include population with different types of glucose disorders, without age group delimitation, follow-up time, and insulin type, dosage, and implementation schedule. Only two studies1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8.,1616 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202. were multicenter and only three were controlled.1515 Moran A, Pekow P, Grover P, Zorn M, Slovis B, Pilewski J, et al. Insulin therapy to improve BMI in cystic fibrosis-related diabetes without fasting hyperglycemia: results of the cystic fibrosis related diabetes therapy trial. Diabetes Care. 2009;32:1783-8.

16 Minicucci L, Haupt M, Casciaro R, De Alessandri A, Bagnasco F, Lucidi V, et al. Slow-release insulin in cystic fibrosis patients with glucose intolerance: a randomized clinical trial. Pediatr Diabetes. 2012;13:197-202.
-1717 Koloušková S, Zemková D, Bartošová J, Skalická V, Šumník Z, Vávrová V, et al. Low-dose insulin therapy in patients with cystic fibrosis and early-stage insulinopenia prevents deterioration of lung function: a 3-year prospective study. J Pediatr Endocrinol Metab. 2011;24:449-54. Moreover, it was not possible to assess the effect of important variables, such as nutritional routine, and a standard definition of glycemic disorders.

When analyzing the results of studies regarding the anabolic effects of insulin, there are theoretical reasons to believe that insulin has a beneficial effect on the population studied. However, the addition of a treatment for diabetes in a multiple drug treatment regimen is complicated, which makes this decision even more controversial.

Multicenter trials in randomized pediatric patients, with adequate nutritional support, type and standard doses of insulin (enough to promote anabolism), are needed to determine if treatment is justified or not. Keep in mind that placebo-controlled trials are difficult to perform due to the fact that insulin is an injectable medicine.

Conclusion

The different methods and case series used in the studies do not allow affirming that early insulin therapy should be applied in patients with CF and glucose disorders. To this end, studies with larger samples, diet standardization, age group, and uniformity of insulin use are needed.

  • Funding
    This study did not receive funding. One of the coauthors receives doctoral fellowship from Fapesp (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo, process n° 2014/00611-2)

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Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    Jul-Sep 2016

History

  • Received
    1 Aug 2015
  • Accepted
    1 Dec 2015
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