Telemedicine compared with standard care in type 2 diabetes mellitus: A randomized trial in an outpatient clinic

Good metabolic control is important in type 2 diabetes mellitus to improve quality of life, work ability and life expectancy, and the use of telemedicine has proved efficient as an add-on to the usual treatment. However, few studies in type 2 diabetes patients have directly compared telemedicine with conventional outpatient treatment, and we wanted to evaluate whether telemedicine, compared with standard care, provides equivalent clinical outcomes.

Forty patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus allocated from October 2011-July 2012 were randomized to either treatment at home by video conferences only or standard outpatient treatment. Primary outcomes were HbA1c and blood glucose levels and secondary outcomes were 24-hour blood pressure, cholesterol levels and albuminuria. The video-telephone was a broadband solution installed and serviced by the Danish Telephone Company (TDC).

The improvements in the two treatments, given as changes in percentage of telemedicine vs standard, showed significant differences in HbA1c (-15 vs -11%), mean blood glucose (-18 vs -13%) and in cholesterol (-7 vs -6%). No differences in LDL (-4 vs -6%), weight (-1 vs 2%), diastolic diurnal blood pressure (-1 vs -7%), and systolic diurnal blood pressure (0 vs -1%) were found. Nine consultations were missed in the standard outpatient group and none in the telemedicine group.

In the direct comparison of home video consultations vs standard outpatient treatment in type 2 diabetes mellitus, telemedicine was a safe and available option with favourable outcomes after six months treatment.