Transforming diabetes care: The effect of insulin pump technology on quality of life in adults with type 1 diabetes: An interview-based case-control study.

Abstract

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) management encompasses multiple, complex daily tasks that strain blood glucose monitoring and the logistics requirements for therapy, burdening the health-related quality of life (HRQoL). This study aimed to measure and compare the QoL in an adult with T1DM with a pump user vs. multiple daily injections (MDI). This case-control study was conducted in a diabetes center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A total of 200 adults with T1DM were managed in a 1:2 (cases/controls) ratio. The cases referred to adults using the pump for >6 months, while controls included patients using more than two daily insulin injections. Data were collected using the self-administered diabetes quality of life (DQOL) questionnaire. Continuous and categorical variables were presented as mean ± standard deviation (SD) and percentages and underwent the <i>t</i>-test and the Chi-square test, respectively. Patients using insulin pump therapy reported notably higher satisfaction levels with diabetes management (mean score of 4.62 ± 0.60 vs. 4.15 ± 0.99, <i>P</i> value = <0.001), general health perception (4.29 ± 0.63 vs. 3.87 ± 0.74, <i>P</i> value = 0.001), time required for blood glucose monitoring (4.05 ± 0.95 vs. 3.67 ± 1.23, <i>P</i> value = 0.035), and knowledge about their condition (4.59 ± 0.55 vs. 4.18 ± 0.93, <i>P</i> value = 0.001). The overall DQOL score indicated a slightly greater health-related quality of life for the insulin pump group, but the difference was not statistically significant.