Documento de posicionamiento sobre el uso de la telemedicina aplicada a la atención diabetológica

[Applicability of innovation in clinical nutrition]

Introduction

The health industry has experienced great innovation and will continue to do so in the coming years. The term innovation comes from "outside to inside" driven by the need for knowledge and research to truly translate into effective improvements (hence the sequence from Research and Development to Innovation: R+D+I); but it also comes from "bottom up" as a drive of the health organization (based, as few others, on knowledge as a fundamental asset) to give way to their creativity and their ability to find new solutions to old and new problems. The current health system must advance in the development of a more global and integrated philosophy of care, which allows dealing with the consequences of aging and the increase in chronic diseases and dependence, which represent an increase in the demand for care. In the medium-long term, a care logic based on individual characteristics from the molecular perspective should be promoted, which is known as 5P medicine (personalized, preventive, predictive, participatory and population), also called personalized medicine, a paradigm that has already initiated its entry, slow and uneven, in health systems. And it must also adapt to a society with more informed and participatory people in the management of their own health, which increasingly use technologies whose development speed grows exponentially. Taking into account these characteristics and objectives, in this article we seek to define the fundamental features of the intersection between innovation and clinical nutrition.

[Effectiveness and economic impact of a program of integrated care with telemedicine support on insulin-treated type 2 diabetic patients (Study GITDIABE)]

AIM

To evaluate if insulin-treated type 2 diabetic patients with blood glucose self-monitoring (DIA), included in a program of integrated management of diabetes mellitus (DM), achieve a better level of metabolic control with telemedicine support than with conventional support, after 12 months follow-up. The impact on the use and cost of healthcare services, pharmaceutical expenditure, and consumption of test strips for blood glucose, was also assessed.

DESIGN

A prospective parallel cohorts study.

FIELD

Four basic health areas of an integrated healthcare organisation.

PARTICIPANTS

The study included 126 DIA patients aged 15 or more years, treated with rapid or intermediate Insulin and blood glucose self-monitoring, grouped into 42 cases and 84 controls, matched according to age, sex, level of metabolic control, and morbidity profile.

INTERVENTION

Telematics physician-patient communication and download of blood glucose self-monitoring data through the Emminens eConecta® platform; test strips home delivered according to consumption. Hidden controls with usual follow-up.

MAIN MEASUREMENTS

Glycosylated haemoglobin (%HbA1c); perception of quality of life (EuroQol-5 and EsDQOL); cardiovascular risk; use of healthcare resources; consumption of test strips; pharmaceutical and healthcare expenditure.

RESULTS

Reduction of 0.38% in HbA1c in the cases (95% CI:-0.89% to 0.12%). No significant differences with regard to any of the activities registered, or any significant change in the quality of life.

CONCLUSIONS

The results obtained are similar to other equivalent studies. The profile of the patient is elderly and with multiple morbidities, who still have technological limitations. To surpass these barriers, it would be necessary to devote more time to the training and to the resolution of possible technological problems.

[Results of a telemedicine program for primary care patients with type 2 diabetes]

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the impact of a telemedicine program on self-perceived health in patients with type 2 diabetes in primary care, as well as patient acceptance of and satisfaction with this program.

METHOD

We conducted an 18-month follow-up through telemedicine in 52 diabetic patients. The study design was non-experimental (before and after). In addition to weekly electronic transmission of fasting glucose levels, we regularly provided advice to patients about healthy habits.

RESULTS

No statistically significant differences were observed when mean blood glucose values were compared during follow-up. However, at the end of participation, the mean score in self-perceived health was significantly higher than at the initial assessment (70.5±12.8 vs. 62.8±15.0, p=0.02). After 18 months of participation in the telemedicine program, 57.7% of patients were satisfied and 38.5% were very satisfied.

CONCLUSIONS

Although glycemic control did not improve during the follow-up, electronic transmission of information was found to be feasible and satisfactory for patients. The patients reported a higher level of self-perceived health.

Impact of telemedicine assessment on glycemic variability in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus

BACKGROUND

Experimental and in vitro studies have related glycemic variability (GV) with activation of oxidative stress, which could be involved in the micro- and macrovascular damage found in diabetes mellitus and in acute complications such as hypoglycemia. Some GV indexes are currently integrated in specialized Web sites for the analysis and assessment of diabetes patients through telemedicine. We aimed to identify the impact of telemedicine on metabolic control and GV in prepubescent patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM).

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

Eighty patients between 6 and 10 years old were eligible for enrollment. Participation was accepted by the parents of only 15 (18%) patients, of whom 13 (86%) completed the study. These 13 patients were assessed fortnightly for 3 months through Accu-Chek (Roche, Mannheim, Germany) Smart Pix software; this period was compared with a subsequent 4-month period without telemedical support. The variables analyzed were mean glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), mean blood glucose (MBG), and indexes of GV (SD, low blood glucose index [LBGI], high blood glucose index [HBGI], and the average daily risk range [ADRR]). In both periods, the patients attended their regular appointments. The statistical analysis was carried out with nonparametric tests (the Wilcoxon and Friedman tests, P<0.017).

RESULTS

At the end of the assessment phase, mean HbA1c levels were significantly reduced (P=0.012) with no significant reductions in the LBGI (P=0.115), ADRR (P=0.552), or SD (P=0.700). No significant increases were observed in MBG (P=0.861) or the HBGI (P=0.807). HbA1c and the LBGI, ADRR, and SD indexes increased when telemedical assistance was suspended, whereas MBG and the HBGI showed a nonsignificant reduction.

CONCLUSIONS

Telemedical assessment for 3 months in children improved metabolic control, by reducing HbAlc values and, to a lesser extent, by decreasing GV, without increasing acute complications. Metabolic control was reduced when the advice was suspended.