Department of Medical Education, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Physiology, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Medicine (Baltimore). 2024 Aug 23;103(34):e39449. doi: 10.1097/MD.0000000000039449.
Diabetic foot is one of the complications in type 2 diabetes mellitus. Adequate knowledge and practice are an important aspect to control further deteriorating conditions such as ulcers and amputations. Thus, the objective of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the impact of the education levels of diabetic patients on diabetic foot care knowledge and practice. This cross-sectional study with a convenient sampling technique was conducted on 534 patients with diabetes mellitus from public and private care hospitals. The data was collected using a validated, pretested and structured bilingual (Arabic, English) questionnaire. There were 534 patients interviewed, 39.1% of whom were males and 60.9% of whom were females and 61.4% of the patients had had T2DM for over 10 years. There was a significant difference in education levels between the male and female patients (53.8% and 46.2%, P = .001). Furthermore, 83.9% patients were married. The difference in education between the married and the single, divorced, and widowed patients was significant (P = .007). Patients with uncontrolled HbA1c were 2.43 times more likely to have hypertension (RR = 2.43, P = .03), while patients with highly uncontrolled diabetes had 3.1 times more chances of hypertension (RR = 3.1, P = .009). Heart disease prevalence was 3.27 times higher in diabetes patients with uncontrolled HbA1c and 3.37 times higher in patients with highly uncontrolled HbA1c. Patients with diabetes who have been diabetic for more than 10 years have a greater risk of heart disease (RR = 2.1; P = .03). Patients with lower education levels exhibited more diabetic complications compared to patients with higher education levels (P < .05). The present study highlights the importance of education and awareness campaigns targeting diabetic patients, especially those with lower education levels, to improve diabetes control and prevent, or manage, comorbidities. Healthcare providers should also prioritize patient education and medication adherence to improve diabetes management and reduce the risk of complications.
糖尿病足是 2 型糖尿病的并发症之一。掌握足够的知识并付诸实践，对于控制溃疡和截肢等病情进一步恶化至关重要。因此，本横断面研究旨在探讨糖尿病患者的教育水平对糖尿病足护理知识和实践的影响。本研究采用便利抽样法，对来自公立和私立医疗机构的 534 名糖尿病患者进行了横断面研究。使用经过验证的、预测试的、双语（阿拉伯语、英语）结构问卷收集数据。共对 534 名患者进行了访谈，其中 39.1%为男性，60.9%为女性，61.4%的患者患有 2 型糖尿病超过 10 年。男性和女性患者的教育水平存在显著差异（53.8%和 46.2%，P=0.001）。此外，83.9%的患者已婚。已婚患者与单身、离婚和丧偶患者的教育水平存在显著差异（P=0.007）。糖化血红蛋白控制不佳的患者发生高血压的风险是控制良好患者的 2.43 倍（RR=2.43，P=0.03），而血糖控制极差的患者发生高血压的风险是控制良好患者的 3.1 倍（RR=3.1，P=0.009）。糖化血红蛋白控制不佳的糖尿病患者发生心脏病的风险是控制良好患者的 3.27 倍，而糖化血红蛋白控制极差的糖尿病患者发生心脏病的风险是控制良好患者的 3.37 倍。糖尿病病程超过 10 年的患者发生心脏病的风险更高（RR=2.1；P=0.03）。与教育程度较高的患者相比，教育程度较低的患者表现出更多的糖尿病并发症（P<0.05）。本研究强调了针对糖尿病患者，特别是教育程度较低的患者开展教育和宣传活动的重要性，以改善糖尿病控制，预防或管理并发症。医疗保健提供者还应优先考虑患者教育和药物依从性，以改善糖尿病管理并降低并发症风险。
