Telehealth disappoints as mental health support strategy for T1D during pandemic

Telehealth strategies do not seem to ease the mental health burden in type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, reports a recent Brazil study.

Researchers conducted an open-label clinical trial on 58 T1D patients (mean age 43.8 years, 50 percent women) during the COVID-19 social distancing period. Half (n=29) of the participants were given the active intervention, involving teleguided multidisciplinary sessions to provide guidance and support to the patients; the other half (n=29) were set as controls and received usual care along with access to an educational website.

The primary outcome of positively screening for an emotional disorder using the Self Report Questionnaire 20 arose at comparable rates between the intervention and control groups during follow-up (48.3 percent vs 34.5 percent, respectively; p=0.29). Baseline rates were likewise comparable (57.1 percent vs 41.4 percent; p=0.43). Within-group comparisons also showed no significant change in the prevalence of emotional disorders over time.

Sleep disorders during follow-up were significantly more common in the intervention group (82.8 percent vs 58.6 percent; p=0.04), though adjusting for baseline questionnaire scores attenuated such significance (odds ratio, 3.4, 95 percent confidence interval, 0.9–11.8). Similarly, diabetes-related emotional distress (27.6 percent vs 27.6 percent; p<0.99) and eating disorders (62.1 percent vs 75.9 percent; p=0.26) occurred at comparable rates between groups during follow-up.

“Although the present study has shown that there is no benefit in using a telehealth strategy for emotional disorders during the COVID-19 pandemic, patients who remained in regular contact with health professionals felt more support in their diabetes care while in social distancing,” the researchers said.

Further studies are needed to assess if such feeling of support impacts glycaemic control and quality of life.