Hypoglycemia Risk Score

Why Use

Iatrogenic hypoglycemia is a frequent adverse event in patients with type 2 diabetes, with 1 in 4 emergency hospitalizations for adverse drug events being related to hypoglycemia. Helps identify highest risk patients, who might benefit from targeted interventions (e.g. simplified medication regimens, continuous glucose monitoring, addressing psychosocial and socioeconomic factors).

Formula

Pearls / Pitfalls

Developed based on electronic health record data to inform population management interventions and therefore may have limited application in individual patients. Validated in multiple external cohorts, including in a dataset using ICD10 codes, but has yet to be applied prospectively.

Advice

High risk patients may benefit from targeted interventions (e.g. simplified medication regimens, continuous glucose monitoring, addressing psychosocial and socioeconomic factors).

More Information

Interpretation: Variables Risk category Risk of hypoglycemia admission in 12 months * ≥3 previous hypoglycemia admissions, OR High >5% 1-2 previous hypoglycemia admission(s) + insulin use 0 previous hypoglycemia admissions + no insulin use + no sulfonylurea use, OR Low <1% 0 previous hypoglycemia admissions + no insulin use + sulfonylurea use + age <77 years + no severe or end-stage kidney disease, OR 0 previous hypoglycemia admissions + insulin use + age <77 years + <2 ED visits All other risk factor combinations Intermediate 1-5%