Diabetes Care, Vol 19, Issue 6 656-658, Copyright © 1996 by American Diabetes Association

ARTICLES

Effect of long-term glycemic control on cognitive function

NB Lincoln, RM Faleiro, C Kelly, BA Kirk and WJ Jeffcoate
Stroke Research Unit, City Hospital, Nottingham, UK. nbl@psyc.nott.ac.uk

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between recurrent hypoglycemia and cognitive impairment in insulin-dependent diabetic patients. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Seventy patients who were diagnosed as diabetic at age 18 years or older, were under 55 years old, and had no condition likely to affect cognitive abilities were recruited from a diabetic register. Patients were interviewed to obtain information on the frequency of major and minor hypoglycemia. Their cognitive abilities were assessed on tests of premorbid intelligence, current intelligence, reaction time, concentration, memory, and information processing. RESULTS: There was a significant correlation between the apparent decline in intelligence, expressed as the discrepancy between the estimated premorbid and the actual performance intelligence quotient, and the frequency of major hypoglycemic attacks (rs = -0.30; P < 0.01). Comparison of patients with and without recurrent hypoglycemia showed few significant differences in cognitive ability. CONCLUSIONS: Results support previous work that suggests that major hypoglycemic attacks have a significant effect on some aspects of cognitive function, but the clinical importance of this finding remains to be determined.
CiteULike    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. J. Cox, L. Gonder-Frederick, L. Ritterband, W. Clarke, and B. P. Kovatchev Prediction of Severe Hypoglycemia Diabetes Care, June 1, 2007; 30(6): 1370 - 1373. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. RATKA Menopausal Hot Flashes and Development of Cognitive Impairment Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci., June 1, 2005; 1052(1): 11 - 26. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. M.A. Brands, G. J. Biessels, E. H.F. de Haan, L. J. Kappelle, and R. P.C. Kessels The Effects of Type 1 Diabetes on Cognitive Performance: A meta-analysis Diabetes Care, March 1, 2005; 28(3): 726 - 735. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. W. Suh, Y. Fan, S. M. Hong, Z. Liu, Y. Matsumori, P. R. Weinstein, R. A. Swanson, and J. Liu Hypoglycemia Induces Transient Neurogenesis and Subsequent Progenitor Cell Loss in the Rat Hippocampus Diabetes, February 1, 2005; 54(2): 500 - 509. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. C. Ferguson, A. Blane, P. Perros, R. J. McCrimmon, J. J.K. Best, J. Wardlaw, I. J. Deary, and B. M. Frier Cognitive Ability and Brain Structure in Type 1 Diabetes: Relation to Microangiopathy and Preceding Severe Hypoglycemia Diabetes, January 1, 2003; 52(1): 149 - 156. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. Kumari, E. Brunner, and R. Fuhrer Minireview: Mechanisms by Which the Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes Impair Memory J. Gerontol. A Biol. Sci. Med. Sci., May 1, 2000; 55(5): 228B - 232. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				I. J Deary and B. M Frier Severe hypoglycaemia and cognitive impairment in diabetes BMJ, September 28, 1996; 313(7060): 767 - 768. [Full Text]