SAT122 The Barriers Of Insulin Access In A Case Of Wolfram Syndrome

Abstract

Abstract Disclosure: D.H. Sacoto: None. C.A. Villavicencio: None. R. Belokovskaya: None. A.A. Franco-Akel, MD: None. Wolfram syndrome (WS) is a rare and fatal condition with a median age of death of about 39 years and affecting around 1 of 100,000 people in North America. Insulin is the mainstay of treatment in WS though, access to it may affect adherence and glycemic control which is correlated with neurodegenerative progression. We present a patient with WS whose complications exacerbated due to insulin access. A 19-year-old African American male with a history of type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), presented to the ED with a 2 day-history of general malaise and emesis. Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) (blood glucose 802 mg/dL, pH 7.2, positive serum ketones) was diagnosed upon arrival. Right optic nerve atrophy was diagnosed at age of seven. At age of eight, patient was diagnosed with bilateral sensory-neuronal hearing loss (SNHL) which led to school withdrawal. It was then when suspicion of WS arose. Single nucleotide polymorphism microarray confirmed homozygosity from the region of linkage on chromosome 4p16.1, where the WFS1 gene lies. At the age of eighteen, patient was diagnosed with neurogenic bladder for which he requires frequent self-catheterization. Since his T1DM diagnosis, patient has faced multiple barriers accessing insulin secondary to insurance issues and lack of social support resulting in multiple hospital admissions for DKA and urinary retention episodes. WS is an autosomal recessive disorder resulting from WFS1 or WFS2 gene mutation on chromosome 4p. WS commonly presents as childhood-onset diabetes mellitus, optic atrophy, SNHL, and neurogenic bladder. Insulin is the first line treatment for optimal glycemic control in WS. Despite optimal glycemic control, WS symptoms and neurodegenerative progression may be influenced by other factors. First, treatment access for rare diseases has shown to be impacted by medical unconscious bias, in addition to systemic, linguistic, and socioeconomic challenges patients may face. Furthermore, Medicaid insurance covering rare diseases still varies widely between 15-67%, and in those insured, there is still a 61% chance of delay or denial due to pre-approval requirements. In addition, poor glycemic control has been correlated with lower socioeconomic status, lack of access to devices such as insulin pumps, migratory status, social support and environment, food security, and ethnic background. Since diabetes control in WS patients is paramount to a better quality of life, additional studies are needed to understand the full scope of barriers that can contribute to policies that facilitate better treatment access for patient and families living with WS. Presentation: Saturday, June 17, 2023