AS14 Human factor in the use of diabetes technology

411 - OBSERVATION OF GLYCAEMIC MANAGEMENT IN PROFESSSIONAL CYCLISTS WITH TYPE 1 DIABETES OVER A 7-DAY WORLD TOUR STAGE RACE

Session Type
E-POSTER VIEWING (EXHIBITION HOURS)
Session Name
HUMAN FACTOR IN THE USE OF DIABETES TECHNOLOGY

Abstract

Background and Aims

Little is known about the glycaemic control of professional athletes with type 1 diabetes (T1D), particularly in ultra-endurance events. Using the latest technologies we investigated factors related to glycaemic management in a professional cycling team with T1D (Team Novo Nordisk; TNN) over a 7-day UCI World Tour stage race.

Methods

Six male professional cyclists with T1D (age 29±3 years, duration T1D 13±7 years, HbA1c 6.4±0.6%) cycled 3-7 hours/day, covering 127-219 km on seven consecutive days during the Tour of California. Time spent in pre-specified glycaemic ranges was assessed using CGM (Dexcom G6). Insulin dosage and timing was recorded using NovoPen® Echo Plus (Novo Nordisk, Bagsværd, Denmark) smart insulin pens.

Results

Overall, TNN placed 14th of 19 teams, ahead of three World Tour teams and with numerous individual successes, including TNN’s first top 10 rider on the final stage. Mean in-ride time in euglycaemia (3.9-10.0 mmol/L) was 63±11% with a low percentage of time in L1 (3.0-3.9 mmol/L; 0±1%) and L2 (<3.0 mmol/L; 0±0%) hypoglycaemia. Riders spent 25±9% of time in L1 (10.1-13.9 mmol/L) and 11±9% of time in L2 (>13.9 mmol/L) hyperglycaemia. Bolus insulin use was infrequent during races, despite high carbohydrate intake. In-ride carbohydrate intakes of this group of athletes (76±23 g∙h-1) coincide with the contemporary nutrition guidelines for endurance athletes t41=1.69, p=0.09.

Conclusions

Despite the many glycaemic challenges, the CGM data show that professional cyclists with T1D spent a high percentage of their time in target glycaemic range, with little time in hypoglycaemia over a World Tour stage race.

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