Treating hyperglycemia and diabetes with insulin therapy: transition from inpatient to outpatient care

Intensive insulin therapy is recommended to control glucose elevations in the critically ill and has been shown to significantly improve outcomes among hospital inpatients with acute hyperglycemia or newly diagnosed diabetes. Once discharged, the hyperglycemic patient may require ongoing outpatient care, most often under the attention of a primary care physician.

The purpose of this review is to provide a background of in-hospital hyperglycemia management and discharge planning in preparation for continued outpatient care. Primary data sources were identified through a PubMed search (1990-2007) using keywords, such as diabetes, hyperglycemia, in-hospital, discharge, and insulin.

Hyperglycemia protocols with strict glycemic goals have been shown to improve morbidity and mortality among critically ill inpatients. Discharge planning should prepare patients for self-care and give them the survival skills necessary to maintain glycemic control. In preparation for discharge, patients are usually transitioned from insulin infusions to subcutaneous insulin administered through an appropriate basal-prandial regimen.

A thorough understanding of hyperglycemia history and treatment will allow the primary care physician to deliver optimal diabetes care and thereby improve both short-term and long-term outcomes for those patients with critical illnesses and hyperglycemia or diabetes.