Effect in self-care behavior and difficulties in coping with diabetes during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

In this study, difficulties in coping with diabetes were evaluated during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lock-down. Similarly, the change in diabetes self-care activities was evaluated in patients with a recent assessment before COVID-19 lockdown in Mexico City. In 212 patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and regular primary care, a designed questionnaire was used to evaluate the presence/absence of difficulties in self-care related to diet, physical activity/exercise, glucose monitoring, treatment adherence, getting pharmacological treatment, and confinement adherence. The Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities tool was used to compare the frequency of self-care behaviors in the past 7 days. Self-reported difficulties in coping with T2D were documented and included difficulties in self-care behaviors related to diet (41.6%), physical activity/exercise (40.5%), glucose monitoring (23.7%), getting pharmacological treatment (22.9%), pharmacological treatment adherence (19%), and home-confinement adherence (11.7%). In the group of patients with a recent previous-lockdown evaluation, global self-care behavior decreased from 5.15±0.9 to 4.49 ± 1.02 days/week, p < 0.001. Diabetes self-care was a predictor for the presence of difficulties in coping with diabetes. Patients with T2D reported difficulties in coping with T2D and decreased diabetes self-care activities during the COVID-19 lockdown in Mexico City. Health-care policies must be designed and implemented to attenuate diabetes disease burden caused by this ongoing and future health-contingencies.