Evidence map›Paper›PMID 33588200›Full record

ArticleDiabetes & metabolic syndrome

Adapting to telemedicine in the COVID-19 era: Feasibility of dried blood spot testing for hemoglobin A1c.

Alissa J Roberts, Faisal Malik, Catherine Pihoker, Jane A Dickerson

Open access · greenAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Diabetes & metabolic syndrome. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
1.3field-weighted citation impact, top 20% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 14 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Dried Blood Spots to Assess Cardiovascular-Kidney-Metabolic Health.Journal of the American Heart Association · 2025
    Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Review
  4. Review
  5. Article
  6. Article
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  9. Remote capillary blood collection for HbADiabetic medicine : a journal of the British Diabetic Association · 2022
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Alissa J RobertsDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA. Electronic address: Alissa.Roberts@seattlechildrens.org.
Faisal MalikDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA.
Catherine PihokerDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, USA.
Jane A DickersonDepartment of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Laboratories, Seattle Children's Hospital, Seattle, WA, USA.
University of Washington · USSeattle Children's Hospital · US

Funding

Leveraging Social Media to Improve Health Outcomes in Adolescents with DiabetesK23DK119465 · NIDDK · SEATTLE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL · PI MALIK, FAISAL SALEEM · 2018 to 2022
$943k
NIDDK NIH HHS K23 DK119465
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimsThe COVID-19 pandemic has led to a rapid growth in the use of telemedicine for delivery of ambulatory diabetes care. This study evaluated the feasibility of remote HbA1c monitoring via dried blood spot (DBS) testing to support assessment of glycemic control for telemedicine visits and examined clinical and demographic characteristics associated with patient completion of DBS testing.

methodsProviders could place orders for DBS HbA1c 3 weeks prior to telemedicine visits. Feasibility was assessed by examining DBS completion rates, time to completion, and availability of DBS results prior to telemedicine visits. Chi-square tests and Mann Whitney tests were used to assess whether completion rates were associated with participant characteristics.

resultsOf 303 DBS orders placed for telemedicine visits in June 2020, 162 patients completed the DBS test for a completion rate of (53.4%). Average time from collection at home to result being reported was 6.9 (3.8) days. The DBS result was available in 67.6% of patients who completed successful DBS, before the telemedicine clinic visit. HbA1c was lower in the DBS completion group as compared to the non-completion group (8.2% vs. 8.9%, p = 0.01). No other clinical or demographic characteristics were significantly different between the two groups.

conclusionRemote HbA1c monitoring via DBS is feasible and offers an avenue to support assessment of glycemic control for patients seen via telemedicine. Future work should focus on improving clinic and laboratory processes to support remote DBS collection.

Indexed as

Adaptation, PsychologicalAdolescentChildCOVID-19Diabetes MellitusDried Blood Spot TestingFeasibility StudiesFemaleGlycated HemoglobinHumansMaleTelemedicineGlycated Hemoglobinhemoglobin A1c protein, humanCOVID-19Diabetes mellitusTelemedicine

Identifiers

PMID33588200
PMCPMC7871808
OpenAlexW3126639010

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.