Level of A1C control and its predictors among Lebanese type 2 diabetic patients

Aim: Lebanon is among the top 10 countries with the highest prevalence of diabetes in the Middle East region with estimates reaching as high as 16.6% in adults aged 20-79 years. The objective of this study was to assess the level of A1C control among a cohort of type 2 diabetic patients and factors associated with uncontrolled A1C. Methods: We carried out a retrospective observational study among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients attending an outpatient endocrinologist's clinic between June 2008 and July 2012 in Beirut, Lebanon. Two groups were compared, based on their diabetic control (A1C < 7% and A1C >= 7%). Results: A total of 551 patients were included in this study, where 31.8% attained A1C control. Crude analyses showed that some factors were significantly associated with uncontrolled A1C, and these were long-standing diabetes, diabetes-related complications, uncontrolled blood pressure, lipid profile, as well as the use of metformin, sulfonylurea, or insulin. When multivariate analysis was carried out, the chances of having uncontrolled A1C were significantly higher among patients who developed neuropathy (odds ratio [OR] 2.08, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.11-3.90), had uncontrolled triglycerides (OR 1.98, 95% CI 1.33-2.94), used insulin (OR 4.52, 95% CI 2.32-8.83), and sulfonylureas (OR 2.88, 95% CI 1.88-4.40). Conclusion: Uncontrolled diabetes is more likely to exist in patients with neuropathy, uncontrolled triglycerides and those using insulin or sulfonylurea. Further research is needed to confirm the findings.