Awareness of Hypoglycemic Episodes Among Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Aseer Region, Saudi Arabia: A...

Background Hypoglycemia, where blood glucose is ≤70 mg/dL, is a serious diabetic complication with high individual and community costs. This study aimed to investigate the level of awareness of hypoglycemic episodes among type 2 diabetic patients in the Aseer region, Saudi Arabia. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Aseer region of Saudi Arabia over 9 months, among 235 type 2 diabetic patients. Data were collected via a pretested self-administered questionnaire and analyzed using SPSS v.25 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, US). The questionnaire included questions about socio-demographic factors and awareness of hypoglycemia among the adult population in the Aseer Region. Results A total of 235 type 2 diabetic patients were enrolled in this study; females formed the majority (60.4%). Regarding educational level, 27.2% of participants were uneducated, 26.4% had a high school education, and 11.1% had a university education. A history of hypoglycemic attack was positive in 50.6% of cases. Overall, about 12.9% of participants were found to have good awareness regarding episodes of hypoglycemia, compared to the majority (87.1%) who had a poor level of understanding. The most known causes and risk factors for the episodes of hypoglycemia were skipping meals or fasting (63.7%) and the use of hypoglycemic drugs (39.5%). More than half (55.3%) considered episodes of hypoglycemia as a life-threatening event, and a slightly higher percentage (55.7%) thought that it could lead to severe complications. Correlation testing showed a statistically significant association between gender, age, and occupation of participants and their level of awareness regarding hypoglycemia (P< .05). Conclusions The study concluded that the majority of patients had a poor level of awareness. A statistically significant association was observed between the gender, age, and occupation of participants and their level of awareness of hypoglycemic attacks.