Effect of COVID-19 on management of type 1 diabetes: Pushing the boundaries of telemedical healthcare

Bilic Curcic, Ines; Cigrovski Berkovic, Maja; Kizivat, Tomislav; Canecki Varzic, Silvija; Smolic, Robert; Smolic, Martina

The new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic posed a great burden on health care systems worldwide and is an enormous and real obstacle in providing needed health care to patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes. Parallel to COVID-19, there have been great advances in technology used for management of type 1 diabetes, primarily insulin pumps, sensors, integrated and closed loop systems, ambulatory glucose profile software, and smart phone apps providing necessary essentials for telemedicine implementation right at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The results of these remote interventions are reassuring in terms of glycemic management and hemoglobin A1c reductions. However, data on long-term outcomes and cost reductions are missing as well as proper technical infrastructure and government health policy support.