AUTHOR=Zhong Jing , Zhang Huimin , Li Zhuyu , Qian Dehui , Zhang Yingqian , Li Chao , Song Yuanbin , Qin Zhexue , Yu Jie , Bian Shi-zhu , Yu Yang , Wang Ke , Li Jing-Wei 

TITLE=Effect of social app-assisted education and support on glucose control in patients with coronary heart disease and diabetes mellitus

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine

VOLUME=9

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cardiovascular-medicine/articles/10.3389/fcvm.2022.947130

DOI=10.3389/fcvm.2022.947130

ISSN=2297-055X

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Background</title><p>Social app-assisted education and support may facilitate diabetes self-management. We aim to evaluate the effect of WeChat, a popular social app, on glycemic control in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) and diabetes mellitus (DM).</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>We conducted a parallel-group, open-label, randomized clinical trial that included 160 patients with both CHD and diabetes mellitus from a tertiary hospital in China. The intervention group (<italic>n</italic> = 80) received educational materials (information on glucose monitoring, drug usage, medication, and lifestyle) and reminders in response to individual blood glucose values <italic>via</italic> WeChat. The control group (<italic>n</italic> = 80) received usual care. The primary outcome was a change in glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) levels over 3 months. Secondary outcomes included fasting blood glucose (FBG), systolic blood pressure, and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol from baseline to 3 months. Analysis was conducted using a linear mixed model.</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>The intervention group had a greater reduction in HbA1C (−0.85 vs. 0.15%, between-group difference: −1.00%; 95% <italic>CI</italic> −1.31 to −0.69%; <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001) compared with the control group. Change in fasting blood glucose was larger in the intervention group (−1.53 mmol/L; 95% <italic>CI</italic> −1.90 to −1.17; <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001) and systolic blood pressure (−9.06 mmHg; 95% <italic>CI</italic> −12.38 to −5.73; <italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001), but not LDL (between-group difference, −0.08 mmol/L; 95% <italic>CI</italic> −0.22 to 0.05; <italic>p</italic> = 0.227).</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion</title><p>The combination of social app with education and support resulted in better glycemic control in patients with CHD and DM. These results suggest that education and support interaction <italic>via</italic> social app may benefit self-management in CHD and DM.</p></sec>