REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ON THE IMPACT OF THE FUNCTIONAL INSULIN THERAPY

Aims: Functional insulin therapy is a therapeutic education concept that allows type 1 diabetic patients (T1D) to manage their treatments in a personalized way. Since the discovery of this method, it has been increasingly used for T1D patients. The aim of our study was to evaluate the impact of functional insulin therapy (FIT) on glycaemic control and quality of life in the literature.

Methods:We searched the scientific literature for studies on the impact of functional insulin therapy.

Results: A total of 34 articles were included, 24 of which studied the impact of FIT on glycaemic control and quality of life. Regardless of initial glycaemic control status, improvement in glycaemic control and quality of life were reported in all studies included in this review. In the long term, these effects are debated, in particular the impact on HbA1c could weaken in contrast to the impact on quality of life and hypoglycaemia which persisted. Concerning the impact on the evolution of weight is controversial, some teams have shown an increase in weight, others, a stagnation and a loss of weight has been reported only in a few studies. After the introduction of FIT, these studies showed a decrease in basal insulin dose.

Conclusions: FIT provides better glycaemic control by reducing hypoglycemics episodes, especially severe ones, and improves the quality of life of T1D patients.