Behavioral Changes in Patients With Diabetes During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study

On March 2, 2020, the first case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was dedicated in Saudi Arabia. The government established partial quarantine, and all precautions were mandatory on March 23, 2020. This in turn forced people to spend more time at home, leading to changes in the physical activity and dietary habits of individuals. In this study, we aimed to assess the behavioral changes of Saudi diabetic individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic and measure the effectiveness of the behavioral changes of Saudi diabetic individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic on the control of the glucose level. A cross-sectional study was conducted through an online questionnaire sent to diabetic patients in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Participants ranging from 18 years old and above of both genders were selected. Diabetic patients (type 1 and 2) were included. All collected data for this study were analyzed using Stata 17 (StataCorp LLC, College Station, Texas, USA). A total of 223 people responded. For 45% of individuals, doctor visits significantly decreased (p<0.05), and the percentage of doctor visits also decreased for individuals who previously visited their doctor more regularly. Furthermore, the number of hours spent on tablets increased significantly during COVID-19 (p<0.05). Our findings demonstrate that there are no significant changes in lifestyle factors or glycemic control during the pandemic compared with the pre-pandemic year in individuals with diabetes. However, the rate of patient visits to the doctor was lower than pre-pandemic, with an increase in the rate of physical activity.