Introduction:

The chronic progression of diabetes mellitus promotes the development of complications such as cardiac, vascular, cerebral, or renal disease.

Objective:

To determine the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of type 2 diabetic patients who attend a diabetes program.

Materials and methods:

An observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted. Adult patients diagnosed with diabetes at the Hospital Regional de Villarrica, Paraguay, were included in the study during the period 2023-2024. The complications and comorbidities presented by the patients were measured.

Results:

Three hundred forty-eight patient medical records were processed, 62% were female, 49% were over 60 years of age, 54% had a primary education level, and 33% were married. The most frequent comorbidities were obesity (32%), high blood pressure (25%), and low HDL (16%). Chronic complications occurred in 45% of patients throughout their condition, the most frequent being chronic kidney disease (35%), ischemic heart disease (21%), and diabetic retinopathy (17%).

Conclusion:

Females were the most affected, especially those over 60 years of age, with a primary education, and who were married. The most common comorbidities were high blood pressure, obesity, and dyslipidemia. Among chronic complications, the most common were kidney disease, followed by ischemic heart disease and diabetic retinopathy.

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