Awareness and Perception of Type 2 Diabetic Patients of Eastern Province in Saudi Arabia about Smart Glucometer Usage in Diabetes Management

Abstract

Objective: The present study aims to identify awareness and perception of Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patient on use of smart glucometer in diabetes management and to look for association of different demographic, clinical, behavioral factors with their awareness and perception on the usage of smart glucometer.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia from 9^th March to 7^th April 2023. Convenience and snow-ball sampling method was used to recruit T2DM patients. An online survey questionnaire was used to collect data on awareness and perception. A total of 78 responses were received during this period. Demographic and clinical characteristics are presented as number and percentage, while perception about smart glucometer usage is presented as mean and standard deviation. p-value <0.05 is considered significant.

Results: Forty-six (59.0%) participants were aware about smart glucometer, while 20 (25.6%) participants reported to have a smart glucometer. The participant’s perception scores for questions related to benefits of using and linking smart glucometer with Sehhaty application was high more than 4. The participant’s behavior of sharing blood glucose levels with their physician and using Sehhaty application for diabetes management showed significantly higher perception scores than their counterpart.

Conclusion: Awareness about smart glucometer is moderate among participants and usage of smart glucometer for monitoring blood glucose level is low. The participants agreed that the usage and linking of smart glucometer would help them in diabetes management and reduce the errors in sharing data with physicians.