ASSESSING THE LONG-TERM EFFECT OF EDUCATIONAL INTERVENTIONS FOR SELF-MANAGEMENT OF DIABETES

Abstract

Objective: To examine the evidence regarding the evaluation of long-term effect of educational interventions for Diabetes Self-care (DSME). Methods: A search of scientific articles was performed by entering key words in the EBSCO databases, data PUBMED and Google Scholar search engine. For this purpose we selected and reviewed articles published from January 2001 to December 2012. Results: We selected and analyzed eight interventions for people with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) between 30 and 85 years of age with poor glycemic control (HbA1c> 7.4% ) at the start of the intervention. As to of clinical and biochemical outcomes after intervention BMI and HbA1c were significantly reduced at 6 months (p<0.001, 1 study), 12 months (p<0.001, 3 studies), 2 years (p<0.001, 2 studies), 3 years (p<0.001, 1 study), 4 years (p<0.001, 1 study) and five years (p<0.001, 1 study). A good level of knowledge about diabetes at two, four and five year follow-up (p<0.001, 3 studies) were reported. Beneficial changes in self-care at 6 and 12 months, two, three and five years respectively (p<0.001, 5 studies) were maintained, and also reported improvements in quality of life at 6 and 12 months, two, three and five years (p<0.001, 7 studies). Conclusion: Participation in a DSME intervention based on empowerment with ongoing support in self-care, can have a lasting positive effect on self-care behaviors, quality of life, metabolic and cardiovascular health.