Knowledge of Complications of Diabetes Mellitus among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes in Saudi Arabia: A Descriptive Study.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge of diabetes- related complications among patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) in Saudi Arabia. METHODS: In this study, 237 patients with T2D, who visited the diabetic clinic at Prince Sultan Military Medical City, Saudi Arabia, from December 2021 to March 2022, were recruited by adopting the non-probability sampling technique. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data on the sociodemographic features of the group in this study and their knowledge regarding T2D-related complications. RESULTS: From the 237 patients with T2D in this study, a higher percentage had hypertension (64.1%), heart disease (67.1%), retinopathy (79.7%), nephropathy (69.7%), diabetic foot (75.9%), and neuropathy (68.4%). Overall, a high number of these patients (122 or 51.5%) expressed inadequate knowledge of complications related to diabetes. Only 40 (16.9%) revealed adequate knowledge of diabetes-related complications, while 75 (31.6%) mentioned genuine ignorance regarding their complications. Patients educational status (p = 0.045), occupation (p = 0.026), and duration of diabetes (p = 0.037) were significantly associated with knowledge of diabetic complications. From the multinomial regression, substantial differences were evident concerning the duration and occupation of the population under study. CONCLUSION: The knowledge patients with T2D possess concerning diabetes-related complications was generally poor. This study indicates that through improved knowledge of diabetes, the risks of diabetes-related complications among T2D patients can be minimized.

Prevalence of impaired awareness of hypoglycemia and its risk factors among patients with type 1 diabetes in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To determine the prevalence of impaired awareness of hypoglycemia (IHA) and self-identification of symptoms in patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D). METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 242 patients with T1D at the Diabetes Treatment Center, Prince Sultan Military Medical City (PSMMC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from May 2021 to September 2021. In addition to the demographic data, patients' HbA1c level was also collected. Awareness and symptoms of hypoglycemia were assessed using two validated questionnaire-based methods, namely the Gold and Edinburgh methods. RESULTS: The prevalence of IAH among patients with T1D was 62.8% and the presence of IAH was significantly associated with the duration of T1D (p = 0.019). Compared to males, females had significantly higher (p < 0.05) levels of warmth, pounding heart, and inability to concentrate. Compared to unmarried, married patients had significantly higher levels of (p < 0.05) drowsiness, dizziness, and blurred vision. Similarly, compared to school educated, college-educated showed a higher hunger level (p < 0.05). Patients with HbA1c ≥ 7% possess a significantly higher level of drowsiness, dizziness, and hunger. Dizziness, warmth, difficulty speaking, pounding heart, and blurred vision were significantly higher among patients with diabetes duration ≥10 yrs. Nausea was significantly higher among smokers than non-smokers (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of IAH is high among patients with T1D in Saudi Arabia. Focused and evidence-based interventions are essential to minimize the hypoglycemia risk among patients with T1D.