Patient Preference and Adherence (Aug 2019)
The role of technology in the management of Diabetes mellitus [Letter]
Abstract
Inayat Hussain Khan, Azhar Ramzan BilalFaculty of Medicine, St George’s Hospital Medical School, London, UKWe read this article by Khurana et al1 with great interest. It is encouraging to see a study which explored how adherence in patients with Type 2 Diabetes mellitus could potentially be improved.Diabetes is a condition affecting an increasing number of people and the macrovascular and microvascular changes are damaging to long term health, predisposing to vascular events such as heart attacks and strokes.2 Adherence to treatment plans is essential for good glycaemic control and to prevent such complications. A study found that effective communication between doctors and patients is key to ensuring adherence to individual treatment plans but of course this does not always take place.3 This current study1 evaluated how technology can help to bridge this gap in the management of chronic conditions like diabetes where treatment is lifelong and complex. Khurana et al1 showed that there is an appetite amongst patients for better use of technology to help manage chronic conditions; more than 80% of the participants surveyed in this studywere interested in using electronic methods to assist them in managing their diabetes.Read the original article by Khurana and collegues here.
