Health Care Disparities Between Men and Women With Type 2 Diabetes

Regular medical checkups indicate a patient's level of adherence to health care treatment, and the frequency of cancelled appointments or no-shows can indicate adherence. This study investigated the use of health care services by men and women and its impact on the control of their type 2 diabetes.

This study observed 100 patients with type 2 diabetes aged 45 years or older who lived in Ventura County, California, during January 1, 2015, to January 31, 2016. The data were collected by Magnolia Family Medical Center. A Pearson χ² test compared differences between men and women in whether they received a glycated hemoglobin A_1c (HbA_1c) test in previous 6 months, a low-density lipoprotein cholesterol test in previous year, and a retinal examination in previous year. A Wilcoxon signed-rank test compared attendance to medical appointments and HbA_1c values for men and women.

Women had a higher rate of scheduling, cancelling or rescheduling, and showing up to their medical appointments than did men, and men had a higher median HbA_1c value than did women; all the Wilcoxon signed-rank tests showed a significant difference (P < .001). None of the χ² tests were significant.

Although men and women had similar health care services for diabetes, men had less control of their disease and took less advantage of medical appointments than did women.