Using Mobile Devices to Treat Prediabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a serious disease in
today's society. And the disease is well
known. A less well known disease in
prediabetes. Prediabetes is a chronic disease
that affects 84%
of the adults in the U.S. Someone with
prediabetes has a higher risk for diabetes
heart disease, stroke and other conditions.
The Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
established the Diabetes Prevention Program
(DPP) in 2012 to address prediabetes. The DPP
program is based on a study,
funded by the National Institutes of Diabetes
and Digestive and Kidney Disease (NIDDK). The
study was performed and reported on between
1996 and 2002. The services delivered in the
DPP can potentially be replicated with the use
of mobile devices.
For those with prediabetes, the DPP study
demonstrated that lifestyle modification, diet
and increased physical activity can reduce the
risk of diabetes by 58%. The DPP study was
done using highly trained individuals to
deliver the one-on-one counseling. These
highly trained individuals included registered
dietitians, and healthcare workers with master's
degrees. These trained individuals worked
one-on-one with the DPP participants.
The one-on-one program was subsequently translated
into a group based program. Delivering
the program in a group-based setting was less
costly than the one-on-one program. And
delivering the program using mobile devices,
such as smart phones, may be a way to make the
program even less costly than the group-based
program. A mobile-delivered DPP has been
looked at in a study.
The study
was a "24-week virtual DPP with human
coaching
through a mobile platform."
The investigators concluded that "A fully
mobile DPP intervention resulted in
significant weight loss and high engagement
during the maintenance phase, providing
evidence for long-term potential as an
alternative to in-person DPP by removing many
of the barriers associated with in-person and
other forms of virtual DPP."
Healthcare providers might want to take note
of the mobile DPP study results. Treating
prediabetes is important. And using the most
cost efficient delivery method will benefit
the patient.
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