Human insulin and awareness of acute hypoglycaemic symptoms in insulin-dependent diabetes

Abstract

Some insulin-dependent diabetic patients who have clear symptoms of hypoglycaemia during animal insulin treatment have reported loss of these symptoms when human insulin preparations are introduced. A survey of Mersey Region, UK, identified eleven patients whose awareness of hypoglycaemia was lost after introduction of human insulin but returned with animal insulin treatment; seven took part in the study. Acute hypoglycaemia was induced in these patients on two occasions by intravenous infusion of porcine or human soluble insulin (2·5 mU. kg -1, min -1) in random order. There was no significant difference between porcine and soluble insulin in the plasma glucose profile; mean (SEM) plasma glucose fell from 7·1 (0·4) mmol/l to a nadir of 1·5 (0·1) mmol/l with porcine insulin and from 7·1 (0·5) mmol/l to 1·6 (0·2) mmol/l with human insulin. An acute autonomic reaction occurred in all seven patients, at a similar plasma glucose concentration (1·9 [0·1] mmol/l with porcine insulin; 2·0 [0·2] mmol/l with human insulin). There were no significant differences in the frequency of symptoms or signs of hypoglycaemia between the two insulin species, nor any consistent differences in plasma glucagon, cortisol, growth hormone, adrenaline, or noradrenaline responses to hypoglycaemia. Symptomatic and hormonal responses to acute hypoglycaemia induced by porcine and human soluble insulins therefore seem to be almost indistinguishable, even in patients carefully selected for their apparent loss of hypoglycaemia awareness with human insulin.