Effects on diabetes management of a health-care provider mediated, remote coaching system via a PDA-type glucometer and the Internet.

We conducted a randomized controlled trial for 12 weeks in patients with type 2 diabetes living in a rural part of Korea. The intervention group (n = 35) was managed by a diabetes centre which provided specialized management mediated by a primary health-care nurse who used a PDA-type blood glucometer with a bar code detector to measure the capillary glucose levels. The control group (n = 36) received usual care. Compared with baseline, HbA(1c) was significantly reduced at three-month follow-up in the intervention group (8.0% vs. 7.5%; P < 0.01), but not in the control group. Total cholesterol was significantly reduced in the intervention group (10.7 mmol/L vs. 10.4 mmol/L; P = 0.043). Fasting plasma glucose and triglyceride levels were lower at follow-up in both groups, but the difference was not significant. The new system could be implemented widely and would contribute to improving the quality of diabetes care, even in isolated rural areas.

RCT Entities:   Population Interventions Outcomes