The profound impact of COVID-19 on the control and care of diabetic patients: a comprehensive retrospective cohort study
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Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Background The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant shift in healthcare services, focusing on pandemic
response and emergency preparedness. The Oman Ministry of Health implemented various measures to combat
and control COVID-19. However, this shift disrupted routine outpatient appointments, particularly for chronic diseases
such as diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension (HTN). This study aims to assess the pandemic’s effect on diabetes
control, by examining glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), blood pressure (BP), lipid values (particularly low-density lipoprotein (LDL), body weight/ body mass index (BMI), and comparing these measures to pre-pandemic levels.
Methods A retrospective cohort study of 223 people with diabetes (PwD), aged 20–95 years who underwent
a blood workup in 2019 and 2020 and were registered in Al-Khuwair Health Centre from March to December 2020.
Data was extracted from the Al Shifa 3plus System and National Diabetic Register (NDR), and analyzed using SPSS.
Results Out of 260 PwD identified, 223 met the inclusion criteria, while 37 were excluded due to recent diagnoses
or missing follow-up in 2019. Significant changes were observed in HbA1C, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and BMI
from 2019 to 2020. Mean HbA1c increased from 6.9% in 2019 to 7.2% in 2020. Mean SBP rose from 131.22 mmHg
in 2019 to 134.84 mmHg in 2020, while mean BMI increased from 30.49 to 30.80. No significant changes were found
in LDL levels or diastolic BP.
Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted healthcare systems globally, and the consequences on health
and mortality were not only due to the direct impact of the virus, but also to the modifications in priorities. These
interruptions in inconsistent care, had consequences for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes. Future
strategic plans should be prepared and implemented to manage NCD cases in case of pandemics.
response and emergency preparedness. The Oman Ministry of Health implemented various measures to combat
and control COVID-19. However, this shift disrupted routine outpatient appointments, particularly for chronic diseases
such as diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension (HTN). This study aims to assess the pandemic’s effect on diabetes
control, by examining glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), blood pressure (BP), lipid values (particularly low-density lipoprotein (LDL), body weight/ body mass index (BMI), and comparing these measures to pre-pandemic levels.
Methods A retrospective cohort study of 223 people with diabetes (PwD), aged 20–95 years who underwent
a blood workup in 2019 and 2020 and were registered in Al-Khuwair Health Centre from March to December 2020.
Data was extracted from the Al Shifa 3plus System and National Diabetic Register (NDR), and analyzed using SPSS.
Results Out of 260 PwD identified, 223 met the inclusion criteria, while 37 were excluded due to recent diagnoses
or missing follow-up in 2019. Significant changes were observed in HbA1C, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and BMI
from 2019 to 2020. Mean HbA1c increased from 6.9% in 2019 to 7.2% in 2020. Mean SBP rose from 131.22 mmHg
in 2019 to 134.84 mmHg in 2020, while mean BMI increased from 30.49 to 30.80. No significant changes were found
in LDL levels or diastolic BP.
Conclusion The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted healthcare systems globally, and the consequences on health
and mortality were not only due to the direct impact of the virus, but also to the modifications in priorities. These
interruptions in inconsistent care, had consequences for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like diabetes. Future
strategic plans should be prepared and implemented to manage NCD cases in case of pandemics.
Date Issued
2024-12-21
Date Acceptance
2024-12-06
Citation
BMC Primary Care, 2024, 25
ISSN
2731-4553
Publisher
BMC
Journal / Book Title
BMC Primary Care
Volume
25
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2024. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License URL
Identifier
https://bmcprimcare.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12875-024-02672-2
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
432
Date Publish Online
2024-12-21