Widespread availability of telemedicine during the pandemic led to more equitable access to endocrinology care for patients with type 2 diabetes and heart disease, according to a study being presented Monday at ENDO 2024, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in Boston, Mass. Patients who benefited included those living in rural areas and in neighborhoods with lower socioeconomic status, according to the study. While most adults with type 2 diabetes receive care in the primary care setting, adults who have both type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease are at high risk for diabetes-related complications and may benefit from receiving specialty care for diabetes by an endocrinologist.
However, access to this care is limited by both a shortage of endocrinologists as well as patient-level barriers including lack of transportation, mobility challenges, and long travel times to the nearest endocrinology clinic, according to study co-author Margaret Zupa, M.D., of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Telemedicine can help patients overcome many of these barriers and can enhance access to endocrinology care for these patients." Margaret Zupa, M.D.
, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine The researchers analyzed electronic medical records for 9,546 adults who had type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease and were seen between January 2018 and June 2022 in a single large integrated health system. The study compared two periods: pre-telemedicine (J.
