In the unfortunate case of severe hypoglycaemia, glucagon is the first-line treatment because of its potent and rapid action starting as fast as 5 minutes after subcutaneous or intramuscular injection. Current instructions for the treatment of severe hypoglycaemia call for the immediate injection of 1 mg of glucagon subcutaneously or intramuscularly. Large dose of glucagon such as 1 mg subcutaneous is usually associated with undesirable side-effects such as nausea, vomiting, bloating and headache. Moreover, glucagon emergency kits are relatively expensive (around $100 per kit), thus increasing the financial burden of diabetes on patients and the health care system.~The primary objective of this research project is to the study the pharmacological effects of different doses of glucagon injected subcutaneously to correct hypoglycaemia during controlled conditions mimicking a hypoglycaemic event in adults with type 1 diabetes. More specifically, we will be looking at the effects of subcutaneous glucagon injected at 0.1 or 0.2 mg and 1.0 mg to normalized plasma glucose during a hypoglycaemic hyperinsulinemic clamp in subjects with type 1 diabetes.
In the unfortunate case of severe hypoglycaemia, glucagon is the first-line treatment because of its potent and rapid action starting as fast as 5 minutes after subcutaneous or intramuscular injection. Large dose of glucagon such as 1 mg subcutaneous is usually associated with undesirable side-effects such as nausea, vomiting, bloating and headache.~The overall objective of this research proposal is to assess the efficacy of lower subcutaneous doses of glucagon (0.1 mg or 0.2 mg) to correct hypoglycaemia compared to the standard dose (1.0 mg) in adults with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D).~It is postulated that much lower dosages of glucagon (0.1 or 0.2 mg) injected subcutaneously will be just as effective as the current recommended dose of 1.0 mg to correct hypoglycaemia without the undesirable gastro-intestinal side effects.