Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Exercise training has become an important adjunct therapy for both the prevention and management of type II diabetes mellitus. Interest in telemedicine is increasing as a potentially innovative and sustainable intervention approach to diabetes management. Telemedicine can facilitate the achievement of individualized treatment goals by training patients to manage their own disease.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of telemedicine on exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with tip II diabetes mellitus.

Methods: Twenty patients with type II diabetes mellitus randomized to either telemedicine treatment group (n=12, HbA1C%=7.5±0.8, mean age=55.3±11.2 years, BMI=33.6±5.2 kg/m²) or a control group (n=8, HbA1C%=8.8±7.9, mean age=50.2±13.8 years, BMI=26.0±2.3 kg/m²). Treatment procedure consists of callisthenic exercises at home by internet based video conferences, 3 days a week for 6 weeks and supervised by a physiotherapist and the patients kept a diary. Disease education performed to all participants at the beginning of the study. Exercise capacity was evaluated by Six Minutes Walk Test (6MWT) and quality of life was assessed by Short Form 36 (SF-36).

Results: SF-36; physical functioning (P=0.01), physical role functioning (P=0.01), emotional role functioning (P=0.02) sub parameters and 6MWT walking distance (P=0.00) were significantly improved after the training in the treatment group while no improvement was obtained in the control group. The change in physical functioning (P=0.00) and physical role functioning (P=0.02) scores significantly differed between two groups.

Conclusion: Telemedicine intervention may be appropriate for type II diabetes mellitus who has activity limitation and may be useful for those who cannot participate in other form of exercises. Studies are limited and more trials that include cost evaluation are required.