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Depression, anxiety and various aspects of positive well-being in uncontrolled adults with Type 2 diabetes

Background

Psychological disorders and quality of life in diabetic patients has received much attention in the literature [1–4]. The aim of our study was to evaluate the prevalence of depression, anxiety and various aspects of positive well-being in uncontrolled adults with Type 2 diabetes.

Materials and methods

72 out-patients with type 2 diabetes, aged 32-83 years old, 38 men and 34 women, completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Well-Being Questionnaire, whilst waiting for their first diabetes appointment. Demographic characteristics, details of diabetes status and HbA1c were recorded. None of these patients was under psychological treatment or had previously consulted a psychiatrist.

Results

62,5% of the patients reported either anxiety or depressive symptoms and 31,9% reported both. 20,8% of the patients reported mild anxiety and 23,6% moderate to severe anxiety, while 27,8% reported mild depression and 22,2% moderate to severe depression.

Women were more likely to report mild anxiety and moderate to severe depression, while mean WBQ positive well-being score was significantly higher in men (p=0,05).

Duration of diabetes was positively correlated with WBQ depression score (r=0,306; p=0,009) and negatively correlated with WBQ energy (r= −0,241; p=0,041), WBQ positive well-being (r= −0,253; p=0,032) and WBQ total score (r= −0,250; p=0,034). HbA1c was positively correlated with HADS anxiety score (r=0,239; p=0,043).

Conclusions

Prevalence rates of psychological symptoms in this uncontrolled diabetic population were high. Diabetes' duration was significantly associated with levels of depression and various aspects of positive well-being, while glycaemic control was related to levels of anxiety. Women reported higher levels of psychological symptoms. A considerable proportion of diabetics require psychological support, which, if available, might help improve glycaemic control and overall well-being.

References

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Open Access This article is published under license to BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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Katsiki, N., Iliadis, F., Didangelos, T. et al. Depression, anxiety and various aspects of positive well-being in uncontrolled adults with Type 2 diabetes. Ann Gen Psychiatry 7 (Suppl 1), S146 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-859X-7-S1-S146

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1744-859X-7-S1-S146

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