Aims/hypothesis  

We investigated the potential effects of the Continuous Glucose Monitoring System (CGMS), as compared with self-monitoring of blood glucose, on glycaemic control in children with type 1 diabetes.

Methods  

The following electronic databases were searched throughout June 2007: MEDLINE, EMBASE and The Cochrane Library. Additional references were obtained from reviewed articles. Only randomised controlled trials were included.

Results  

We included five trials involving 131 type 1 diabetic patients in the study. Combined data from all trials showed that the CGMS did not significantly reduce HbA_1c levels compared with control groups. The pooled weighted mean difference was −0.02% (95% CI −0.29 to 0.25) with a fixed model and remained insignificant in the random effect model. Sensitivity analysis determined that the findings were stable. There was a trend towards a longer time under the CGMS curve for glucose <3.89 mmol/l in the CGMS group compared with the control group (mean difference 49.00 min, 95% CI −18.00 to 116.00). The CGMS significantly increased the number of insulin dose changes per patient per month for those managed with CGMS compared with the control groups (mean difference 6.3 changes, 95% CI 2.88–9.72).

Conclusions/interpretation  

The Continuous Glucose Monitoring System is not better than self-monitoring of blood glucose with regard to improvement of metabolic control among type 1 diabetic children. However, due to the small number of participants and methodological limitations of the studies included, findings of this meta-analysis should be interpreted with caution.