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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Journal of Diabetes and Endocrine Practice 2021; 04(03): 125-130
DOI: 10.4103/jdep.jdep_12_21
Original Article

Management of adrenal insufficiency: A survey of perceptions and practices of physicians from the Middle East and North Africa

Salem Beshyah
1   Department of Medicine, Dubai Medical College, Dubai
,
Khawla Ali
2   Department of Medicine, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Medical University of Bahrain, Busaiteen
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Introduction: Treatment of adrenal insufficiency (AI) requires correct lifelong use of glucocorticoids (GCs) with early dose adjustments to cover the increased demand in stress to avoid life-threatening emergencies. Objectives: We determine the current specific knowledge of physicians in a convenience sample on the pathophysiological and clinical aspects of AI in the two regions of North Africa and the Middle East. Materials and Methods: Participants (n = 96) were invited to complete an electronic questionnaire with various possible answers on the subject of multiple-choice questions covering physiology, pharmacology, and clinical management and define respondents' professional profiles. Results: The present study suggests that in the investigated settings, physicians' knowledge of physiology and pharmacology GCs, medical replacement strategies in AI, and prevention of adrenal crisis may be insufficient. Great knowledge gaps were demonstrated. Conclusions: There is a need for continuous structured education and training on AI in both general medical and endocrine forums.

Keywords

Adrenal crisis - adrenal insufficiency - glucocorticoid replacement therapy - hydrocortisone - prednisolone

Financial support and sponsorship

Nil.




Publication History

Received: 10 April 2021

Accepted: 12 July 2021

Article published online:
06 July 2022

© 2021. Gulf Association of Endocrinology and Diabetes (GAED). All rights reserved. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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