title: Self-monitoring of blood glucose improved glycemic control and the 10-year coronary heart disease risk profile of female type 2 diabetes patients in Trinidad and Tobago.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The risk of death from coronary heart disease (CHD) in women with diabetes is more than three times that of non-diabetic women. We assessed the difference in CHD risk levels of Afro-Caribbean diabetic women provided with facilities for self-monitoring of blood glucose and their counterparts without such facilities
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty-nine patients who never used gluco-meters were studied as intervention (23) and control (26) groups. The intervention group was trained on self-monitoring of blood glucose. At baseline, BP, anthropometric indices, and fasting blood glucose of all patients were measured. Subsequently, the intervention patients were provided with gluco-meters, testing strips, and advised to self-monitor fasting and postprandial blood glucose every other day for 6 months. CHD risk was determined with the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study risk engine calculator.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The age, duration of diagnosis of diabetes, BP, and anthropometric indices were similar in the two groups (all, P > 0.05). The majority of the patients were unemployed or retired with only primary education. After 3 months, the HbA 1c levels of the control patients did not change (8.3 ± 0.4% vs. 7.8 ± 0.4%, P > 0.05) whereas the HbA 1c levels of the intervention patients reduced significantly from the baseline at 3 (9.2 ± 0.4% vs. 7.4 ± 0.3%, P <0.001) and 6 (9.2 ± 0.4% vs. 7.3 ± 0.3%, P <0.001) months. The 10-year CHD risk level of the intervention group was remarkably reduced from the baseline level after 6 months (7.4 ± 1.3% vs. 4.5 ± 0.9%) of the study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Provision of facilities for self-monitoring of blood glucose in Afro-Caribbean women with type 2 diabetes improves both their glycemic control and CHD risk profile.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Pathology and Microbiology, Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad. chidum.ezenwaka@sta.uwi.edu
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Ezenwaka
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dimgba
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Okali
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Skinner
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Extavour
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jones-LeCointe
mesh_terms: D044383:Black People; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism*; D015190:Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D006442:Glycated Hemoglobin / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D050356:Lipid Metabolism; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D014300:Trinidad and Tobago / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D006442:Glycated Hemoglobin; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents