Rural Telehealth Visits in the Management of Type 1 Diabetes

2021 ◽  
pp. 193229682110379
Author(s):  
Leslie A Eiland ◽  
Andjela Drincic

Introduction: Despite advances in and increased adoption of technology, glycemic outcomes for individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D) have not improved. Access to care is limited for many, in part due to a shortage of endocrinologists and their concentration in urban areas. Managing T1D via telehealth has potential to improve glycemic outcomes, as the barriers of travel-related time and cost are mitigated. Methods: Our endocrine telehealth program started in 2013 and currently provides care to nine rural community hospitals in Nebraska and Iowa. A retrospective cohort study was performed to evaluate glycemic outcomes in people with T1D who received care at these telehealth clinics from 2013-2019. Data were collected on age, race, gender, prior diabetes provider, use of diabetes technology, and A1c values over time. Results: One hundred thirty-nine individuals were followed for an average duration of 32 months (range 4-69 months). Sixty-six percent of people were previously under the care of an endocrinologist. The most common therapeutic action, in addition to insulin adjustment, was addition of a CGM (52%). Each year in telemedicine care was associated with a decline of 0.13% in A1c (95% CI: −0.20, −0.06). There was no association between A1c and age or gender. When stratifying by previous diabetes provider, all groups had a statistically significant decline in A1c, even those with a previous endocrine provider. There was no statistically significant decline in A1c based on addition of technology. Conclusion: We have shown that traditional telehealth visits are an effective way to provide care for people with T1D long-term and may provide distinct advantages to home telehealth visits.

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anagha Champakanath ◽  
Halis Kaan Akturk ◽  
G. Todd Alonso ◽  
Janet K Snell-Bergeon ◽  
Viral N Shah

Objective: To evaluate long-term glycemic outcomes of CGM initiation within the first year of type 1 diabetes. <p>Research Design and Methods: 396 patients with type 1 diabetes were divided into three groups; 1) CGM [CGM use within one year of diabetes and continued through the study], 2) no-CGM [no CGM use throughout the study], 3) new-CGM [CGM use after 3 years of diabetes] and were followed up to 7-years. </p> <p>Results: A1c was significantly lower in CGM compared to no-CGM group throughout 7 years of follow-up [LS mean A1cs (%): 6-month 7.3 vs 8.1, 1-year 7.4 vs 8.6, 2-year 7.7 vs 9.1, 3-year 7.6 vs 9.3, 4-year 7.4 vs 9.6, 5-year 7.6 vs 9.7, 6-year 7.5 vs 10.0 and 7-year 7.6 vs 9.8, all p<0.001] adjusting for age at diagnosis, sex, and insulin delivery method. </p> <p>Conclusion: CGM initiation within first year of type 1 diabetes results in long-term improvement in A1c. </p>


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