TY - JOUR
T1 - Effects of delay in visiting a specialist doctor in type 2 diabetic patients on glycemic control
T2 - a retrospective cohort study with a 4-year follow-up
AU - Ghanbari-Jahromi, Mohadeseh
AU - Kharazmi, Erfan
AU - Bastani, Peivand
AU - Shams, Mesbah
AU - Aryaie, Mohammad
AU - Bahrami, Mohammad Amin
PY - 2023/12/27
Y1 - 2023/12/27
N2 - Background. Diabetic patients’ delay in visiting a specialist doctor can have significant effects on blood sugar factors. The present study aimed to determine the effects of delay in visiting a specialist doctor in type 2 diabetic patients on glycaemic factors. Material and methods. The patients’ demographic and clinical information included in medical records of 209 type 2 diabetic patients referred to diabetes clinics in Shiraz city, south of Iran, were analysed using logistic mix-model regression. Due to the occurrence of COVID-19 during the follow-up period, data analyses were done separately before and after the pandemic. Results. The mean age of the patients was 63.47 ± 8.89 years, and 67.94% of the type 2 diabetic patients were female. After COVID-19, haemoglobin A1C (HBA1C) of the patients who had delays of < 3, 3–6 and > 6 months in referring to a specialist increased by 1.81 (OR: 1.12–2.93), 2.56 (OR: 1.81–5.56) and 3.69 (OR: 1.79–7.63), respectively, compared to the group without delays. In this period, 2-hour Postprandial Glucose (2-hpp) of the patients with delays of 3–6 and > 6 months and the Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS) of the patients with delays of > 6 months had a significant increase of 1.92 (OR: 1.01–3.65), 2.14 (OR: 1.09–4.21) and 2.36 (confidence interval of 95%: 1.27–4.39), respectively, compared to the patients without delays in visits. The above trends had a non-significant increase before COVID-19, though. Conclusions. Healthcare providers should ensure the continuity of providing services to diabetes patients, especially during health crises, by taking appropriate measures.
AB - Background. Diabetic patients’ delay in visiting a specialist doctor can have significant effects on blood sugar factors. The present study aimed to determine the effects of delay in visiting a specialist doctor in type 2 diabetic patients on glycaemic factors. Material and methods. The patients’ demographic and clinical information included in medical records of 209 type 2 diabetic patients referred to diabetes clinics in Shiraz city, south of Iran, were analysed using logistic mix-model regression. Due to the occurrence of COVID-19 during the follow-up period, data analyses were done separately before and after the pandemic. Results. The mean age of the patients was 63.47 ± 8.89 years, and 67.94% of the type 2 diabetic patients were female. After COVID-19, haemoglobin A1C (HBA1C) of the patients who had delays of < 3, 3–6 and > 6 months in referring to a specialist increased by 1.81 (OR: 1.12–2.93), 2.56 (OR: 1.81–5.56) and 3.69 (OR: 1.79–7.63), respectively, compared to the group without delays. In this period, 2-hour Postprandial Glucose (2-hpp) of the patients with delays of 3–6 and > 6 months and the Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS) of the patients with delays of > 6 months had a significant increase of 1.92 (OR: 1.01–3.65), 2.14 (OR: 1.09–4.21) and 2.36 (confidence interval of 95%: 1.27–4.39), respectively, compared to the patients without delays in visits. The above trends had a non-significant increase before COVID-19, though. Conclusions. Healthcare providers should ensure the continuity of providing services to diabetes patients, especially during health crises, by taking appropriate measures.
KW - COVID-19
KW - diabetes mellitus
KW - glycaemic control
KW - type 2
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85180908689&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.5114/fmpcr.2023.132612
DO - 10.5114/fmpcr.2023.132612
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85180908689
SN - 1734-3402
VL - 25
SP - 393
EP - 398
JO - Family Medicine and Primary Care Review
JF - Family Medicine and Primary Care Review
IS - 4
ER -
