The Pharmaceutical Journal Vol 267 No 7176 p767-773
1 December 2001

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Self-monitoring in type 2 diabetes causes stress

Self-monitoring of blood glucose is associated with higher glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA_1c) levels and psychological burden in patients with type 2 diabetes who are not treated with insulin, say researchers.

In a study published recently in Diabetes Care, Monica Franciosi, department of clinical pharmacology and epidemiology, Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research, Italy, and colleagues investigated the frequency of self-monitoring of blood glucose and its association with metabolic control and quality of life.

The researchers say that 17 per cent of the 2,855 patients involved in the study tested their blood glucose levels more than once a day, 31 per cent tested blood glucose levels more than once a week and 14 per cent tested less than once a week. However, 38 per cent of all patients never tested blood glucose levels.

In patients treated with insulin who were able to adjust their dose, a higher frequency of testing was associated with better metabolic control. However, they say that in non-insulin treated patients, self-monitoring was associated with higher HbA_1c levels. Higher levels of stress, distress, worry and depressive symptoms were seen in non-insulin treated patients who monitored their blood glucose more than once a day. The researchers conclude that their data did not support the self-monitoring of blood glucose in patients not treated with insulin (2001;24:1870).

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