Life with diabetes in the COVID-19 era

Abstract

The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the lives of billions of people, especially those with chronic diseases such as diabetes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the physical and mental health of diabetics living in the Balkans. The study was conducted as an online survey in April 2023. 129 people participated in the survey. 76 of them were diagnosed with type 1 and 53 with type 2 diabetes. 6.97% of all respondents had a close family member who died from the consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection, and as many as 77.78% of these decedents suffered from diabetes and/or cardiovascular disease. The majority of the respondents were also infected with SARS-CoV-2. Most of them were diagnosed with diabetes before infection, and SARS-CoV-2-induced diabetes was mainly type 2. Although they regularly took prescribed pharmacotherapy and nutritional supplements, blood glucose was elevated in half of them, while D-dimer levels were elevated mainly in type 2 diabetics. Also, hospitalization during the acute phase was more frequent in type 2 diabetic patients. Most diabetics suffered from sleep disorders (p < 0.01), and type 2 diabetics also suffered from nightmares (p < 0.05). Consequently, the use of anxiolytics and antidepressants was more frequent in type 2 diabetic patients. Recovery was significantly faster in type 1 diabetics, due to less comorbidities such as hypertension, cardiovascular and liver diseases, which were more common in type 2 patients.