Self-care behaviours among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus in South Asia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Grish Paudel; Corneel Vandelanotte; Padam K Dahal; Tuhin Biswas; Uday N Yadav; Tomohiko Sugishita; Lal Rawal

doi:10.7189/jogh.12.04056

Self-care behaviours among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus in South Asia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

J Glob Health. 2022 Aug 3:12:04056. doi: 10.7189/jogh.12.04056.

Authors

Grish Paudel¹, Corneel Vandelanotte², Padam K Dahal¹, Tuhin Biswas³, Uday N Yadav^{4

5}, Tomohiko Sugishita⁶, Lal Rawal^{1

2

7}

Affiliations

¹ School of Health, Medical and Applied Sciences, Central Queensland University, Sydney, Australia.
² Appleton Institute, Physical Activity Research Group, Central Queensland University, Rockhampton, Australia.
³ The Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
⁴ National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.
⁵ Centre for Primary Health Care and Equity, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
⁶ Section of Global Health, Division of Public Health, Department of Public Health, Tokyo Women's Medical University, Tokyo, Japan.
⁷ Translational Health Research Institute (THRI), Western Sydney University, Sydney Australia.

Abstract

Background: The burden of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) in South Asian countries is increasing rapidly. Self-care behaviour plays a vital role in managing T2DM and preventing complications. Research on self-care behaviours among people with T2DM has been widely conducted in South Asian countries, but there are no systematic reviews that assess self-care behaviour among people with T2DM in South Asia. This study systematically assessed the studies reporting self-care behaviours among people with T2DM in South-Asia.

Methods: Adhering to the PRISMA guidelines, we searched six bibliographic databases (Scopus, PubMed, CINAHL, Embase, Web of Science, and PsychInfo) to identify the relevant articles published between January 2000 through March 2022. Eligibility criteria included all observational and cross-sectional studies reporting on the prevalence of self-care behaviours (ie, diet, physical activity, medication adherence, blood glucose monitoring, and foot care) conducted in South Asian countries among people with T2DM.

Results: The database search returned 1567 articles. After deduplication (n = 758) and review of full-text articles (n = 192), 92 studies met inclusion criteria and were included. Forward and backward reference checks were performed on included studies, which resulted in an additional 18 articles. The pooled prevalence of adherence to blood glucose monitoring was 65% (95% CI = 49-80); 64% for medication adherence (95% CI = 53-74); 53% for physical activity (95% CI = 39-66); 48% for diet (95% CI = 38-58); 42% for foot care (95% CI = 30-54). About a quarter of people with T2DM consumed alcohol (25.2%, IQR = 13.8%-38.1%) and were using tobacco products (18.6%, IQR = 10.6%-23.8%).

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the prevalence of self-care behaviours among people with T2DM in South Asia is low. This shows an urgent need to thoroughly investigate the barriers to the practising of self-care and design and implement interventions to improve diabetes self-care behaviour among people with T2DM in South Asia.

Publication types

Meta-Analysis
Systematic Review

MeSH terms

Asia / epidemiology
Blood Glucose
Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring
Cross-Sectional Studies
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / epidemiology
Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2* / therapy
Humans
Self Care

Substances

Blood Glucose