Abstract
Background: This study aimed to measure the frequency of insulin use, compared to other antidiabetic drugs, in diabetic patients presenting with acute stroke in order to investigate its effect on the incidence of stroke.
Methods: All diabetic patients with acute stroke who were referred to the emergency department within one year were included in this retrospective descriptive-analytic study. The collected data were statistically analyzed using SPSS 20. Data were reported as descriptive statistics (frequency and percentage) and means (±SD). Non-independent t test and chi-square test were used to compare quantitative and qualitative variables, respectively (P=0.05).
Results: Out of 896 patients admitted to the stroke care unit, 191 cases were diagnosed with diabetes mellitus (DM). Computerized tomography (CT) scan findings performed in the emergency department represented about 30% of hemorrhagic results. There was a significant relationship between the type of diabetes treatment and the age of the patients, the CT scan findings, and the duration of DM in the patients.
Conclusion: Therefore, patients with long-term involvement with diabetes and patients with high creatinine, due to insulin use, are discharged from hospitals with better conditions.