We describe the results of the HAT study in 433 Argentinean patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and 823 with type 2 diabetes (T2D). HAT was an international non-interventional study assessing severe and non-severe hypoglycaemia in patients with T1D and T2D under insulin treatment through a two-part self-assessment questionnaire (retrospective and prospective). The annual incidence of at least one hypoglycaemic episode was 46 episode/patient/year in T1D and 14.2 in T2D (retrospective), 96.5 and 24.6 episode/patient/year in T1D and T2D, respectively (prospective). Hypoglycaemia affected quality of life (on a scale of 0-10 for fear of hypoglycaemia: 60% in T1D and 37.6% in T2D scored 5 to 10), daily life, occupational or academic performance (2.1% with T1D and 3.2% with T2D did not attend to their work after hypoglycaemia), and induced an increased use of health resources (T1D: 66.1% increased glucose monitoring, 60.5% food intake, 51% consultations, 3.5% hospital admissions; 60.5% reduced insulin and 20.9% exercises; T2D increased 46.2% glucose monitoring, 43.8% consultations, 38.6% food intake, 24.1% reduced and 13.9% skipped the insulin dose and 14.3% suspended exercises). Greater numbers of episodes were recorded in the prospective period. An instrument to assess hypoglycaemia in clinical practice and strategies to reduce their risk are required. It is also important to ask about the episodes and reinforce the education of patients and close relatives on hypoglycaemia prevention and treatment.
Keywords: HAT study; diabetes; hypoglycaemia; insulin treatment; type 1 diabetes; type 2 diabetes.