Factors Associated with Participation in Diabetes Education: The Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007 to 2009

A recent study revealed that the participation rate in diabetes education among diabetic patients was only about 50% in Korea. We investigated the factors associated with participation in diabetes education. The study included 1,255 patients (≥19 years old) diagnosed with diabetes drawn from the total Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2007 to 2009 population comprising 30,705 individuals. We compared age, sex, and age- and sex-adjusted clinical characteristics in patients who had received diabetes education versus those who had not. Of the 1,255 patients, 19.8% (n=248) had received diabetes education. Patients in the group who received diabetes education were younger, diagnosed at an earlier age, had a longer diabetes duration and were more likely to be using insulin therapy compared with the group who did not receive diabetes education (P