BMJ  2007;335:271 (11 August), doi:10.1136/bmj.39297.470324.1F

Letters

Self monitoring in diabetes

Let me own my disease

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

As has been pointed out by several responders, the trial of Farmer et al was flawed in that those in the "intensive testing" group were not given the information to act on the results of their tests to bring their blood glucose down (take exercise), nor were they encouraged to use the results of the test to modify their diets to achieve greater control.^{1 2} On the contrary, they were encouraged to maintain their regimens.

Therefore I find the contention that self monitoring of blood glucose is not beneficial and the attitude of some of the medical profession towards their diabetic patients extremely arrogant and ill founded. It led me to think about how I would feel if I were refused strips and treated like a child with the diabetes specialist nurse precribing my regimen—in effect, it would take away my "ownership" of the disease.

Surely it is possible for doctors . . . [Full text of this article]

Lescudjack Centre, Penzance, Cornwall TR18 3PE

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Relevant Article

Impact of self monitoring of blood glucose in the management of patients with non-insulin treated diabetes: open parallel group randomised trial

Andrew Farmer, Alisha Wade, Elizabeth Goyder, Patricia Yudkin, David French, Anthea Craven, Rury Holman, Ann-Louise Kinmonth, and Andrew Neil
BMJ 2007 335: 132. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]