Factitious and artifactual hypoglycemia

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 16, 2026

Study of In Vivo Glucose Metabolism in High-fat Diet-fed Mice Using Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) and Insulin Tolerance Test (ITT)
08:13

Study of In Vivo Glucose Metabolism in High-fat Diet-fed Mice Using Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT) and Insulin Tolerance Test (ITT)

Published on: January 7, 2018

D L Horwitz1

  • 1University of Illinois, Chicago.

Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinics of North America
|March 1, 1989
PubMed

Insights

Artifactual hypoglycemia stems from sample errors, while factitious hypoglycemia involves patient deception. Diagnosing factitious hypoglycemia requires identifying high insulin and low C-peptide levels during hypoglycemic events.

Area of Science:

  • Clinical Biochemistry
  • Endocrinology
  • Diagnostic Medicine

Background:

  • Hypoglycemia can be artifactual, caused by sample collection issues or interfering substances.
  • Factitious hypoglycemia is intentionally induced by patients, posing diagnostic challenges.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To differentiate between artifactual and factitious hypoglycemia.
  • To outline diagnostic strategies for factitious hypoglycemia.

Main Methods:

  • Review of causes and diagnostic markers for artifactual and factitious hypoglycemia.
  • Emphasis on biochemical markers for diagnosing factitious hypoglycemia.

Main Results:

  • Artifactual hypoglycemia is detectable through proper sample handling and substance screening.
  • Factitious hypoglycemia is commonly caused by self-administered insulin, indicated by elevated insulin and suppressed C-peptide levels.
  • Misuse of glucose monitoring strips can also mimic hypoglycemia.

Conclusions:

  • Distinguishing artifactual from factitious hypoglycemia is crucial for accurate diagnosis and management.
  • Biochemical evaluation, particularly insulin and C-peptide levels, is key to identifying surreptitious insulin use.
  • Awareness of patient-induced hypoglycemia is essential in clinical practice.

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