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Review
. 2021 Dec;15(6):918-922.
doi: 10.1016/j.pcd.2021.07.017. Epub 2021 Aug 2.

Challenges of routine diabetes care during COVID-19 era: A systematic search and narrative review

Mohammad Mohseni  1 , Shiler Ahmadi  2 , Saber Azami-Aghdash  3 , Haleh Mousavi Isfahani  4 , Ahmad Moosavi  5 , Mozhgan Fardid  6 , Manal Etemadi  4 , Fatemeh Ghazanfari  7
Affiliations
Review

Challenges of routine diabetes care during COVID-19 era: A systematic search and narrative review

Mohammad Mohseni et al. Prim Care Diabetes. 2021 Dec.

Abstract

Background: The world is facing the current COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic response is affecting routine health care provision all over the world. We aimed to review the relevant literature and highlight challenges in the provision of routine care for patients with diabetes during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Embase databases up till August 13, 2020 and retrieved relevant articles published on difficulties on routine diabetes management during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Results: Through our reading of the recent literature discussing the difficulties of routine healthcare provision for patients with diabetes amid the COVID-19 pandemic, we have identified nine themes as follows: lockdown of standard outpatient clinics, decreased inpatient capacity, staff shortage, medicine shortage, unaffordable medicine, delayed care seeking, limited self-care practice, transport difficulties, and undiagnosed cases/events.

Conclusion: Diabetes management during lockdown is particularly challenging. This review specified a summary of difficulties of diabetes care during COVID-19 pandemic. Healthcare policy makers as well as healthcare providers could take advantage of the results of this review to mitigate the adverse effect of the crisis on provision of routine care for diabetes as well as other chronic conditions.

Keywords: COVID-19; Diabetes; Diabetes management; Narrative review; Pandemic.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Flow diagram for study selection.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Challenges of routine diabetes care during COVID-19 era.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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