Use of electronic health records for the management of diabetes and its risk factors in the Principality of Asturias from 2014 to 2018

• Published in: Endocrinología, diabetes y nutrición. diabetes y nutrición., 2024-05, Vol.71 (5), p.208-215
• Main Authors: García-Villarino, Miguel, Lambert, Carmen, De la Hera, Jesús M., Torre, Edelmiro Luis Menéndez, Rodríguez-Lacín, José María Fernández, Delgado-Álvarez, Elías
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Cardiovascular Diseases - epidemiology; Cardiovascular Diseases - etiology; Cardiovascular risk factors; Cross-Sectional Studies; Datos del mundo real; Diabetes mellitus; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 - epidemiology; Dyslipidemias - epidemiology; Electronic Health Records; Epidemiology; Epidemiología; Factores de riesgo cardiovascular; Female; Heart Disease Risk Factors; Humans; Hypertension - epidemiology; Male; Middle Aged; Prevalence; Primary Health Care; Real-world data; Risk Factors; Spain - epidemiology
• ISSN: 2530-0180; 2530-0180
• DOI: 10.1016/j.endien.2024.03.017

In recent years, the implementation of electronic health records across all hospitals and primary care centres within the National Health System has significantly enhanced access to patients’ clinical data. This study aims to estimate the prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in primary care settings and to outline its associated cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF) and epidemiological characteristics. An observational cross-sectional study was conducted including 89,679 patients diagnosed with T2DM who attended the primary health care system from 2014 to 2018. Data was provided by the Primary Health Care System of the Principality of Asturias (SESPA). The estimated prevalence of diagnosed T2DM was 8.01% (95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 7.96–8.06) of the total population. Additionally, it was more prevalent in males compared to females (9.90% [95% CI: 9.81–9.99] vs. 6.50% [95% CI: 6.44–6.57]) and increased with age in both sexes. People with T2DM had an average age of 74 years, 52.3% were male, and the most frequently associated CVRF were: dyslipidaemia (47.90%) and hypertension (62.20%). Glycaemic control improved during the 2014–2018 period (31.69%), as did lipid control (23.66%). However, the improvement in blood pressure control (9.34%) was less pronounced for the same period. Regarding the multifactorial control of diabetes (measured by LDL-cholesterol, HbA1C and blood pressure) the overall degree of control improved by 11.55% between 2014 and 2018. In this 5-year retrospective population-based study, the utilisation of data from electronic medical records provides insights into the prevalence of T2DM in a large population, as well as real-time CVRFs. Leveraging this data facilitates the development of targeted health policies. En los últimos años, la implementación de registros electrónicos de salud en todos los hospitales y centros de atención primaria dentro del Sistema Nacional de Salud ha mejorado significativamente el acceso a los datos clínicos de los pacientes. Este estudio tiene como objetivo estimar la prevalencia de la diabetes tipo 2 (T2DM) en entornos de atención primaria y describir sus factores de riesgo cardiovascular (CVRF) asociados y características epidemiológicas. Se realizó un estudio observacional transversal que incluyó a 89.679 pacientes diagnosticados con T2DM que asistieron al sistema de atención primaria de salud desde 2014 hasta 2018. Los datos fueron proporcionados por el Sistema de Atención Primaria de Salud del Principado de