Is it necessary to test a child's blood sugar all night long if he has juvenile diabetes and takes insulin?

My brother and sister in law test my nephew's blood sugar around the clock....even through the night while he is sleeping. He was diagnosed a few years ago, so they have had time to get a handle on his diet and what affects his sugar. He is four years old. Seems a little obsessive to me, but I wanted some other opinions.

The life of a parent of a small child with diabetes is hard to understand if you have not lived it.

They not only live in perpetual fear of hypoglycemia that their child will not recognize, they also have the worry of life-long consequences. They also must grieve the loss of their "dream" child.

There is a syndrome called "dead in bed" where the child has apparently had a hypoglycemic attack that did not awaken him/her, the bedcovers are not even disturbed. This is every parent's nightmare, and if they cannot sleep and must test, then leave them alone. They are not hurting the child, because kids can sleep through this.

There have been recent improvements in continuous glucose monitoring that could help allay their nighttime fears. Minimed and Dexcom make them. The links are below.

It is obsessive. They should monitor his levels during the day before mealtimes, but other than that they should be monitoring his behavior and speech for signs of a problem. I can understand their concern, but what they are doing makes no sense. The little guy already has his share of problems without having to be put through this unneccessary testing.

it depends i guess on how well the child's diabetes is controlled if its all over the place then i would but if his/her a1c's come back good all the time then i wouldnt bother

No, it isn't necessary to test in the middle of the night.
3 to 5 times during the day is all that most doctor's request.
That would be when the child gets up in the morning, then 2 hours after breakfast, lunch and dinner and then the final at bedtime.
Hope this helps you.
But if your still concerned, talk to the child's parents and ask them what their doctor recommended.
But testing in the middle of the night is going a little overboard, in my opinion.
Good Luck.

In time we learn what we need without testing. It's not a perfect science. We learn to take what we need at meal time, depending on what we eat. If we are not eating, we don't need medication. Too much medication causes low blood sugar which is BAD.

no of course not you should never wake the child up every hour or so just to make sure that his/her blood sugar is ok. You should only check your child at leats 4 times a day once at breakfast, lunch, dinner, and bedtime and if the parents and doctor wishes in between at snacks and if the child's blood sugar is high at bedtime you should give the child insulin before bed and if it the childs blood sugar is low have the child eat a 15 gram snack such as an energy bar or juice then you can have the child go to bed and in 1-2 hours check the childs blood sugar to see if it has raised if it hasnt you should give the chiled one more carb then the child can go back to bed repeat the process until the childs blood sugar is in line.

Some times it might be necessary to check in the night. Not every day.

They really need some diabetes education so they and their child can live a normal life.

I wish them the best.

That is extreme.

Even when he is sick, testing every 2 hours is plenty. If he is doing fine, a sugar check every 4-6 hours (4-6 times a day) is enough (that's over a 24 hour period, by the way).

I test my sugar about every 4-6 hours because I use an insulin pump. I do fine like that. I think your brother and his wife are carrying it too far.

As long as your nephew is sleeping through the night with no adverse effects, your brother and his wife should leave him alone and let him sleep. A sugar check before he goes to bed and one when he wakes up is fine. Overnight checks are not necessary unless there is a problem.

EMT

It seems too much.