Frequency of A1C tests undertaken by patients assisted by pharmaceutical care services in Brazil

Abstract

Background and aims: The test of glycated hemoglobin is used to assess the glycemic control of patients with diabetes mellitus, however is essential that the monitoring is carried out with adequate frequency. In this context, the objective of study is evaluate the frequency of A1C tests undertaken by patients assisted by pharmaceutical care services.

Methods: Descriptive study that included patients with DM treated at pharmaceutical care services in Brazil. This service is provided by pharmacists, for optimizing of patient's drug therapy to achieve outcomes that improve a patient's quality of life. Frequency of A1C tests was collected, with a minimum interval of three and a maximum of six months being considered adequate. Tests performed with a minimum interval of less than three or greater than six months frequency were considered inadequate. The comparison of the mean time between the A1C tests between the groups was investigated by the Student's t-test. The significance level adopted was p < 0.05. The study was conducted using data recorded from March 2018 to December 2019.

Results: The study included 66 patients and 67% of these underwent A1C test with inadequate frequency. The mean time between A1C tests was significantly higher (p < 0.0001) in group with inadequate frequency.

Conclusion: Only one third of DM patients treated by pharmaceutical care services are monitored with adequate A1C frequency. It is necessary to identify the causes of this underutilization and to develop tools to optimize the monitoring.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus; Glycated hemoglobin; Pharmaceutical care.