Socioeconomic and Behavioral Disparities Among Diabetics in Saudi Arabia: A Nation-Wide Descriptive Study

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to explore sociodemographic, behavioral and clinical factors in adult participants with Diabetes in Saudi Arabia. Methods A population-based cross-sectional study of 20492 potential participants conducted in quarters 1 and 2 in 2021 from all 13 administrative regions of Saudi Arabia. A backward maximum likelihood logistic regression model, including all variables, was used to identify variables associated with participants living with Diabetes. Results A total of 14007 participants, aged ≥18 years, completed the interview, with a response rate of 68.3% and successful quota sampling. Fifty percent were male, the mean age was 36.7 (SD 13.7; range: 18–90). Of the total sample, 1633, 11.7% had Diabetes. Seven percent only of diabetic patients (124 participants) had an acceptable level of fruit and vegetable intake. In addition, only (274, 16.8%) had an acceptable level of physical activity, compared to (2389, 19.3%) in the non-diabetic group. Daily smokers were slightly higher in the diabetic group compared to the non-diabetic group (13.2% vs 11.7%). Hypertension was reported mostly by the diabetic group (45.1% vs 8%). Overweight and Obesity were more prevalent in patients with Diabetes (72.50% vs 51.62%). The results of the logistic regression have shown that several sociodemographic, behavioral and intermediate risk factors were significantly associated with Diabetes. Conclusion The study found that the prevalence of Diabetes in Saudi Arabia is around 12%, which is lower than the previously reported prevalence of Diabetes in Saudi Arabia. Moreover, Diabetes was found to be associated with lower educational level, smoking, obesity and overweight, hypercholesterolemia and hypertension. These factors are essential to be identified and screened in the community at regular interval; furthermore, controlling these factors may improve their disease management and quality of life. Additionally, knowing these factors will assist policymakers to shape an effective practical approach to combat diabetes widespread.

Assessment of the Post-Marketing “Drug Ineffective” Reports Received by the Saudi Vigilance System

“…These findings correlate with the adult age group that was frequently associated with the reported DI in the current study, and align with the documented high prevalence of chronic diseases e.g. hypertension [26], diabetes [27] and hypercholesterolemia [28] among adults in the Kingdome of Saudi Arabia.…”

The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, chronic kidney disease, and obesity in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and the description of concurrent treatments: A two-center retrospective cross-sectional study in Saudi Arabia

“…Moreover, the prevalence of smoking in our study was 7.6 % overall, with a higher prevalence observed in the ASCVD group at 13.2 %. Comparatively, other cross-sectional studies in SA reported smoking rates in individuals with diabetes at 9.4 % in 2005 ( Saeed, 2012 ), and 13.2 % in 2021 ( Almubark et al, 2022 ). Additionally, a higher prevalence of smoking was noted at 25.7 % in patients with diabetes in the US ( Clair et al, 2013 ).…”

Estimating the potential economic impact of the Wasfaty program on costs of antidiabetic treatment: An initiative for the digital transformation of health

“…As a sensitivity analysis, we used diabetes mellitus prevalence to assess cost per patient. A recent study estimated the prevalence of diabetes mellitus to be 11.65% in 2021( Almubark et al, 2022 ). Beginning in the pre-Wasfaty period, including 2017 and 2018, we used a range of 11–12% as the prevalence of diabetes mellitus to avoid underestimation of diabetes mellitus during the study period, and we calculated the proportion of the patients treated in MoH facilities from the total prevalence, which equaled 43.2% in 2017 and 42.9% in 2018 ( MOH, 2017 , MOH, 2018 ).…”

“…Diabetes mellitus is considered one of the endemic diseases in Saudi Arabia. There is no specific reference for the prevalence of diabetes, but a recent study found that the prevalence of diabetes is 11.65% ( Almubark et al, 2022 ).…”