Effects of 12-Week Freestyle Libre 2.0 in Children with Type 1 Diabetes and Elevated HbA1c: A Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Objective: To investigate whether intermittently scanned continuous glucose monitoring (isCGM) reduced glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) compared with capillary self-monitored capillary blood glucose (SMBG) in children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and elevated glycemic control.

Research Design and Methods: This multicenter 12-week 1:1 randomized, controlled, parallel-arm trial included 100 participants with established T1D aged 4–13 years (mean 10.9 ± 2.3 years) naive to isCGM and with elevated HbA1c 7.5%–12.2% [58–110 mmol/mol] [mean HbA1c was 9.05 (1.3)%] [75.4 (13.9) mmol/mol]. Participants were allocated to 12-week intervention (isCGM; FreeStyle Libre 2.0; Abbott Diabetes Care, Witney, United Kingdom) (n = 49) or control (SMBG; n = 51). The primary outcome was the difference in change of HbA1c from baseline to 12 weeks.

Results: There was no evidence of a difference between groups for change in HbA1c at 12 weeks (0.23 [95% confidence interval; CI: −0.21 to 0.67], P = 0.3). However, glucose-monitoring frequency increased with isCGM +4.89/day (95% CI 2.97–6.81; P < 0.001). Percent time below range (TBR) <3.9 mmol/L (70–180 mg/dL) was reduced with isCGM −6.4% (10.6 to −4.2); P < 0.001. There were no differences in within group changes for Parent or Child scores of psychosocial outcomes at 12 weeks.

Conclusions: For children aged 4–13 years with elevated HbA1C isCGM led to improvements in glucose testing frequency and reduced time below range. However, isCGM did not translate into reducing HbA1C or psychosocial outcomes compared to usual care over 12-weeks. The trial is registered within the Australian New Zealand Trial Registry on February 19, 2020 (ACTRN12620000190909p; ANZCTR.org.au) and the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (Universal Trial Number U1111-1237-0090)