Abstract

GARCIA, Rosario  and  SUAREZ, Rolando. Results of educational follow-up of persons with type 2 diabetes mellitus and overweight/obesity. Rev Cubana Endocrinol [online]. 2003, vol.14, n.3, pp. 0-0. ISSN 1561-2953.

The present paper showed the results of educational follow-up of persons with type 2 diabetes mellitus and overweight/obesity carried out as part of the Latin American study PEDNID-LA, with the objective of prospectively evaluating the clinical, biological and therapeutic changes after their participation in a group educational program with interactive methodology. The study comprised 40 non-insulin dependent, obese or overweighed patients chronologically selected according to their date of attendance to ambulatory service and preferably with recent onset of disease. Interactive medical appointment was set every three months where care and education combined and educational contents was emerging from the real perceived needs of the group, which centered on the promotion of active participation of the patients and increased compliance with the treatment, giving priority to meal planning, exercising, reduction of body weight and self-monitoring of urine glucose as it has been applied to other groups of diabetic persons. Knowledge on diabetes was measured in similar questionnaires designed in the general multicenter protocol of the PEDNID-LA study and they were applied at the beginning and at the end of the study and at 4 years of the interactive follow-up. The rest of variables were assessed before, after a year of the PEDNID-LA study and after 4 years of the interactive follow-up. Software Epi-Info processed data; Chi-Square test determined statistical differences and accepted significance criteria was set at p< 0,05. The main results included a significant rise of knowledge on the disease and the reduction of body weight, of classical symptoms of the disease and of daily dosage of oral hypoglycemic drugs. The average levels of glycosylated hemoglobin at the end of the study had substantially improved. On balance, it was confirmed once again that educational intervention brings about better understanding and greater compliance with the treatment as well as normalization of clinical, biochemical and therapeutic indicators.

Keywords : Type 2 diabetes; overweight; obesity; therapeutic education.