Abstract:
Background and Objective: Despite the obvious benefits of early insulin use in
achieving good glycaemic control, insulin linked overweight/obesity and
hypoglycaemia are sources of concern and worry. Burden of these side effects among
type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) outpatients on insulin therapy in Nigeria is
unknown.
Subjects and Methods: This was a prospective, cross sectional and observational
study in which consenting T2DM outpatients that meet the inclusion criteria for the
study in five tertiary health facilities were simultaneously recruited and relevant data
obtained via investigator-administered questionnaire. Data obtained which included
gender, arthropometric measures, hypoglycaemia and where it was treated were
analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0 software.
Results: A total of 245 T2DM outpatients were recruited into the study, made up of
107 (43.7%) male and 138 (56.3%) female. Of this, 121 (49.8%) patients were
overweight while 70 (28.7%) were obese. Among the patients, 104 (42.4%) T2DM
outpatients on insulin therapy reported hypoglycaemia which was mild in 83 (79.8%)
of the patients
Conclusion: A significant number of the type 2 DM outpatients on insulin therapy
were overweight/obese with mild hypoglycaemia in a majority of them.
