RESEARCH LETTER
Bobbie L. Johannes, PhD; G. Craig Wood, MS; Arch G. Mainous III, PhD; Adam Cook, BA; Alanna Kulchak Rahm, PhD; Christopher D. Still, DO; Lisa Bailey-Davis, DEd
Corresponding Author: Bobbie L. Johannes, PhD; Department of Population Health Sciences, Geisinger
Email: bjohannes@geisinger.edu
DOI: 10.3122/jabfm.2023.230382R2
Keywords: Access to Primary Care, Continuity of Patient Care, Prediabetic State, Primary Health Care, Retrospective Studies, Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Dates: Submitted: 10-20-2023; Revised: 11-19-2023; 03-18-2024; Accepted: 03-25-2024
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BACKGROUND: The association between interpersonal continuity of care (CoC) and progression from the prediabetic state to T2D remains unknown.
AIM: To evaluate the association between interpersonal CoC and the progression to T2D among persons with prediabetes.
DESIGN AND SETTING: A retrospective cohort study using EHR data from 6,620 patients at Geisinger, a large rural health care system in Danville, PA.
METHODS: Cox regression methods were used to estimate the hazard ratio associated with progression to T2D within 3-years of being diagnosed with prediabetes.
RESULTS: One additional visit with the primary care provider most frequently seen by the patient is associated with 14% decreased risk (HR=0.86; 95% CI=0.85, 0.87; p<0.001) of transitioning to type 2 diabetes within 3 years of being diagnosed with prediabetes.
CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates an association between increased interpersonal CoC after a person is diagnosed with prediabetes and a reduced risk of progressing to T2D within three years.