AACE surveys reveal new data on type 2 diabetic adults
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Two new surveys conducted by the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists reveal surprising and new information about adults living with type 2 diabetes.
The Perspectives in Diabetes Care surveys, conducted with support from Sanofi US, revealed that patients are more willing to take action to reach their individualized average blood glucose, or A1C, targets quicker than physicians and other medical professionals believe.
More than half of adults living with type 2 diabetes polled are very willing to visit their physicians and other medical professionals more often and make multiple medication changes in order to achieve their A1C targets quicker, while less than one in five physicians and other medical professionals believe that patients would be very willing to take these actions.
Specifically, the studies showed:
• While 57 percent of adults living with type 2 diabetes would be very willing to visit their physicians and other medical professionals more often, only 19 percent of physicians and other medical professionals polled believe they would be willing to do so.
• In addition, 52 percent of adults living with type 2 diabetes would be very willing to make multiple medication changes, though only 16 percent of physicians and other medical professionals think they would be very willing to make these changes.
“The disconnect uncovered by these surveys illustrates that patients are frustrated by not achieving their A1C target and are willing to accelerate the treatment process if it means reaching it more quickly,” said George Grunberger, M.D., immediate past president, American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. “Physicians should ensure they are effectively addressing patients’ therapeutic goals when it comes to determining treatment plans, and recognize that for certain patients, early and intensive treatment – in accordance with the AACE diabetes guidelines and algorithm, which recommend re-evaluating patients every three months and intensifying diabetes treatment if their A1C is not at target – is the appropriate approach.”
These differing perceptions could play a role in the length of time it takes some patients to achieve their individualized A1C targets. The implications could be significant as more than 42 percent of patients surveyed have yet to achieve their A1C target and 77 percent of these respondents want to achieve it more quickly.
For respondents who had yet to achieve their individualized A1C target, frustration levels doubled after one year of treatment compared to after three months of treatment.
• Among patients surveyed, 22 percent have stopped taking their diabetes medication without talking to their physician or other medical professional; and
• Of those, more than one-third (38 percent) reported doing so because they were not reaching their A1C target quick enough, contributing to additional challenges for the physicians and other medical professionals responsible for their care.
“These findings demonstrate the importance of ensuring that patients, physicians and other medical professionals are collaboratively addressing the challenges that exist in reaching as well as maintaining glycemic control, and considering different approaches where appropriate,” said Chris Kaplan, North America Region Head, diabetes and cardiovascular business unit, Sanofi. “Our collaboration with AACE underscores our commitment to the clinicians who treat patients with diabetes and addressing their unmet needs.”
Physicians and other medical professionals can visit the Glycemic Explorer website at glycemicexplorer.com to learn more about why a proactive approach to treatment might be right for some type 2 diabetes patients.