Glycemic control in diabetic patients in King Khalid University Hospital (KKUH) - Riyadh - Saudi Arabia.

Objectives: To evaluate glycemic control of diabetic patients at the King Khalid University Hospital (KKUH) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among diabetic patients attending KKUH, Riyadh. Patients were identified through the hospital pharmacy records, over a one year period (January-December, 2009). A total of 20,000 patients were identified, and 1520 patients were selected by a simple random method. Medical charts were reviewed, the data were collected in a specially designed data sheet: and entered in a computer, and finally analyzed using a SPSS program.

Results: About 90% of patients were older than 40 years old and 90% were overweight or obese. Fasting blood sugar was above 7.2 mmol/L in 60% of the patients and random blood sugar was more than 10 mmol/L in about 70% of patients. The overall glycemic control as evaluated by HBA1C was acceptable in about 40% of the patients. Cholesterol level was normal in more than 70% of patients while triglyceride was normal in 56% of patients. In about half of the patients systolic blood pressure was not controlled, while in 27% the diastolic blood pressure was above the target level.

Conclusion: The control of diabetes and its associated cardiovascular risk factors in this hospital - based survey, in Riyadh is far from optimal. Further studies are needed to find out the possible causes for this defective care of diabetic patients.