185-LB: Effect of the COVID-19 Lockdown on Glycemic Control in Adult Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Objective: The rapid emergence of the SARS-COV2 virus that caused COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 led to authorities instituting lockdown protocols to curb spread of the virus. Prior studies in patients with T1DM have demonstrated a short-term favorable or neutral effect of the lockdown on glycemic parameters; however, data is limited in T2DM patients. We sought to identify how the lockdown affected the glycemic control of adult patients with T2DM within a specific region of New York Design & Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we analyzed data from patients with regular outpatient visits within an integrated-delivery health system in South Bronx, New York who had A1C levels measured within 6 months prior to the initiation of lockdown (Mar ’20) and a repeat A1C within 3 months after the first phase of reopening in New York (June ’20). Analysis of comparison between pre- and post-lockdown HbA1c values was performed using paired samples T-test. Results: A total of 2489 adult patients with an established diagnosis of T2DM and A1C levels available during the study period were identified. 632 patients were excluded due to pregnancy, prediabetes, new-onset diabetes, residency in long-term care facility or hospital admission during the study period. Age range was 18 to 95 years with a mean age of 61. 58% of the patients were female and 41% male. Mean pre-lockdown A1C was 7.64% and mean post-lockdown A1C was 7.76%, indicating an increase of 0.122% (95% CI, 0.0613-0.1827) Conclusions: The COVID-19 lockdown was associated with a small but statistically significant increase in HbA1C levels (0.122%) in a large cohort of community-dwelling adult patients with type 2 diabetes in South Bronx. Interruptions to regular outpatient care, difficulty in obtaining medications from pharmacies, changes in physical activity or diet and psychological stress related to the pandemic may have been potential contributing factors and need to be addressed to avoid further worsening of diabetes control in the longer term.