Abstract

Objective: This study aims to investigate the role of 2-h postprandial C peptide (2HPC-P) for assessing islet β-cell function in Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods: A total of 326 T2DM patients were enrolled into this clinical study. The correlations were analysed between 2HPC-P, 2HPC-P increment, and 2HPC-P/fasting C-peptide (FC-P) with the area under the C-peptide curve (AUC-C) after a 100 g bread challenge. Of these patients, 87 newly diagnosed T2DM patients were divided into two groups, group I (2HPC-P/FC-P ≥3, n = 43) or group II (2HPC-P/FC-P <3, n = 44), performed insulin pump-intensive therapy for two weeks, followed by follow-ups for three months.

Results: The positively correlations were found between the 2HPC-P, 2HPC-P increment and 2HPC-P/FC-P with AUC-C (r = 0.97, 0.88, and 0.77, respectively, P < 0.05). After the insulin pump-intensive therapy, the HOMA2 IR values appeared no significantly difference (2.50 ± 0.69 vs 2.23 ± 1.36, P > 0.05), while HOMA2 B% was significantly higher (145.9 ± 56.2 vs 26.9 ± 22.4, P < 0.01) than the basic values in newly diagnosed T2DM in total. During the follow-up, more patients in Group I underwent remission than in group II (20/43 vs 5/44).

Conclusions: 2HPC-P and its derivative indicators could effectively assess islet β-cell function.