Continuous glucose monitoring for diabetes prevention in adults with prediabetes: a scoping review
- 1Department of Internal Medicine, Dong-A University Hospital
Abstract
Background: Prediabetes affects a rapidly growing proportion of adults worldwide (IDF Diabetes Atlas 2024: 12.0% impaired glucose tolerance; 9.2% impaired fasting glucose). Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) offers a more granular window into glycemic patterns than intermittent testing, and its use in prediabetes research has grown substantially, but this literature has not been comprehensively mapped.
Objective: To systematically map the extent, range, and nature of peer-reviewed literature on CGM use in adults with prediabetes, following a pre-registered protocol.
Methods: PubMed was searched in June 2026 (436 records), followed by a supplementary Europe PMC and Scopus check in October 2026. After AI-assisted first-pass title/abstract screening (with post hoc human re-screening of random samples) and independent two-reviewer eligibility assessment against Population–Concept–Context criteria (adults 18 and older with prediabetes; any rtCGM/isCGM use; no design restriction), 44 PubMed studies were included. The supplementary search added 4, a post hoc re-screening audit reinstated 1, and 1 was excluded on closer verification, giving 48 included studies, all with extracted data. No meta-analysis or formal quality appraisal was performed; studies were narratively synthesized into five pre-specified categories.
Results: Fifteen studies characterized CGM-derived glycemic metrics, showing graded worsening of glycemic control and variability across the normoglycemia–prediabetes–diabetes continuum. Twenty-nine studies evaluated CGM-guided interventions, which produced CGM-detectable improvements in glycemic variability or time-in-range that did not consistently translate into significant HbA1c or fasting glucose change. Three studies addressed screening/diagnosis, including a large cohort (n=8,315) in which single-timepoint fasting glucose resulted in different glycemic classification when repeated CGM-derived measurements were considered. One study addressed broader metabolic/complication risk, and none addressed CGM-based prediction of progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes.
Conclusion: CGM provides a more granular, continuous picture of glycemic dysregulation in prediabetes than intermittent testing. Interventions used CGM either as a real-time feedback tool or as a blinded outcome measure of non-CGM interventions, with CGM-detectable glycemic improvement in both, though durable biomarker translation remains inconsistent. CGM-based prediction of progression to diabetes is an unaddressed evidence gap; CGM’s role in screening/diagnosis and complication-risk assessment also warrants more research.
Systematic review registration: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/QSXK9 , identifier 10.17605/OSF.IO/QSXK9.
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BibTeX
@article{lee2026continuous,
title = {{Continuous glucose monitoring for diabetes prevention in adults with prediabetes: a scoping review}},
author = {Hye Jung Lee and Jin Kyeong Kim},
journal = {Frontiers in Endocrinology},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fendo.2026.1965925},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fendo.2026.1965925/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Continuous glucose monitoring for diabetes prevention in adults with prediabetes: a scoping review
AU - Hye Jung Lee
AU - Jin Kyeong Kim
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/28
JO - Frontiers in Endocrinology
DO - 10.3389/fendo.2026.1965925
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fendo.2026.1965925/full
AB - Background: Prediabetes affects a rapidly growing proportion of adults worldwide (IDF Diabetes Atlas 2024: 12.0% impaired glucose tolerance; 9.2% impaired fasting glucose). Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) offers a more granular window into glycemic patterns than intermittent testing, and its use in prediabetes research has grown substantially, but this literature has not been comprehensively mapped. Objective: To systematically map the extent, range, and nature of peer-reviewed literature on CGM use in adults with prediabetes, following a pre-registered protocol. Methods: PubMed was searched in June 2026 (436 records), followed by a supplementary Europe PMC and Scopus check in October 2026. After AI-assisted first-pass title/abstract screening (with post hoc human re-screening of random samples) and independent two-reviewer eligibility assessment against Population–Concept–Context criteria (adults 18 and older with prediabetes; any rtCGM/isCGM use; no design restriction), 44 PubMed studies were included. The supplementary search added 4, a post hoc re-screening audit reinstated 1, and 1 was excluded on closer verification, giving 48 included studies, all with extracted data. No meta-analysis or formal quality appraisal was performed; studies were narratively synthesized into five pre-specified categories. Results: Fifteen studies characterized CGM-derived glycemic metrics, showing graded worsening of glycemic control and variability across the normoglycemia–prediabetes–diabetes continuum. Twenty-nine studies evaluated CGM-guided interventions, which produced CGM-detectable improvements in glycemic variability or time-in-range that did not consistently translate into significant HbA1c or fasting glucose change. Three studies addressed screening/diagnosis, including a large cohort (n=8,315) in which single-timepoint fasting glucose resulted in different glycemic classification when repeated CGM-derived measurements were considered. One study addressed broader metabolic/complication risk, and none addressed CGM-based prediction of progression from prediabetes to type 2 diabetes. Conclusion: CGM provides a more granular, continuous picture of glycemic dysregulation in prediabetes than intermittent testing. Interventions used CGM either as a real-time feedback tool or as a blinded outcome measure of non-CGM interventions, with CGM-detectable glycemic improvement in both, though durable biomarker translation remains inconsistent. CGM-based prediction of progression to diabetes is an unaddressed evidence gap; CGM’s role in screening/diagnosis and complication-risk assessment also warrants more research. Systematic review registration: https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/QSXK9 , identifier 10.17605/OSF.IO/QSXK9.
SN - 1664-2392
ER -