Burden of Illness of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Five-Year Longitudinal Study

Abstract

Introduction Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is associated with huge clinical and economic burden in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) which can be curtailed by efficacious treatment. In order to achieve this, current treatment pathways for T2DM and associated costs need to be assessed. Methods A longitudinal cohort review was conducted to collect country-specific and patient-specific clinical data, over a minimum observation period of 5 years in the KSA. Patient demographics, clinical characteristics and treatment patterns were recorded. The IQVIA Core Diabetes Model (CDM) version 9.5 Plus was used to assess the burden of illness, which included long-term projections of clinical (life expectancy [LE], quality-adjusted life-years [QALYs], event rates of diabetes-related complications) and direct medical cost (per-patient annual or lifelong [50 years]) outcomes of the most commonly used first-line (1st-line) regimens for T2DM from a payer perspective in the KSA. Results Data were collected from a subpopulation of 638 patients from 15 participating centres. There was an equal gender representation with a majority of the patients belonging to Arabian/Saudi ethnicity (71.0%). Biguanides (81.5%), sulfonylureas (51.6%), dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) inhibitors (26.2%) and fast-acting insulins (17.2%) were the most prescribed 1st-line agents. The most frequently used 1st-line regimens resulted in an estimated LE of 25–28 years, QALYs of 18–21 years and lifelong total cost of illness of 201,377–437,371 Saudi Arabian riyal (53,700–116,632 US dollars). Conclusion Our study addresses gaps in the current research by providing a complete landscape of baseline demographic, clinical characteristics and treatment patterns from a heterogeneous group of patients with T2DM in the KSA. Additionally, the burden of illness analysis using CDM showed substantially higher cost of T2DM care from a payer perspective in the KSA. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12325-023-02772-y.

Regional Profiling for the Frequency, Patterns, and Factors of Hearing Loss Reveals Genetics, Geriatric Age, and Noise Hazard as Major Predispositions

“…Infection and inflammation are common causes of hearing loss worldwide; an example is Malawi where HIV clinical studies are intensively conducted 24% (n 380) had hearing loss due to AIDS [40]. It is widely known that diabetes plays significant role in hearing loss [41] and Saudi Arabia has a high rate of the disease [42] where 19.2% of participants in this study reported having diabetes mellitus. While travelling, injuries and trauma, and other factors were lower, and may not have high impact, 21.2% of respondents reported change in altitude from low to high or vise versa.…”