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Diabetes-related distress and quality of life among people with type 2 diabetes at primary care level in Brazil

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Abstract

Purpose

Living with diabetes can be challenging, particularly when it comes to dealing with psychological distress and requiring self-care directives. Patients may feel frustrated, angry, overwhelmed, and discouraged. This study aimed to investigate the diabetes-related distress and quality of life among people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods

A cross-sectional study carried out at the Clinical Research Centre at the University of Campinas, Brazil, between September 2020 and April 2021. Patients answered data regarding demographic and clinical variables, the Brazilian version of the Diabetes Distress Scale and the Diabetes Quality of Life (QOL) Measure by telephone contact. The data were managed using the RedCap System. For statistical analysis of the data, the Mann–Whitney and Kruskal–Wallis tests were applied for comparisons, and the Chi-square test for associations. The correlations were evaluated using the Spearman correlation coefficient.

Results

Out of the 302 participants we recruited, 50.33% exhibited significant diabetes-related distress. Those with elevated diabetes-related distress scores had shorter education levels (p < 0.05), lower HbA1c levels (p < 0.05), and lower total scores in Diabetes QOL Measure (p < 0.0001), particularly in the QOL impact (p < 0.0001), social/vocational worry (p < 0.05), and diabetes worry (p < 0.0001) subscales compared to the group with the lowest diabetes-related distress.

Conclusion

Elevated diabetes-related stress scores significantly affect patients’ QOL. Therefore, early screening of individuals at risk for this condition, using well-coordinated protocols, could mitigate adverse QOL effects and enhance their overall experience during disease management.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nursing, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil

    Natália Wilcesky Tosini Neves, Jéssica Silva Cunha Breder, Bruna Andrade Oliveira, Flávia Cristina Zanchetta & Maria Helena Melo Lima

  2. Department of Clinical Medicine, School of Medical Sciences, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil

    Joaquim Barreto & Andrei C. Sposito

Authors
  1. Natália Wilcesky Tosini Neves
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  7. Maria Helena Melo Lima
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Contributions

NWTN enrolled patients; JSCB enrolled patients and analysed data, BAO edited and revised the manuscript; FCZ wrote and revised the manuscript; JB analysed data; ACS coordinated the study and revised the manuscript; and MHML designed and coordinated the study. All authors have contributed to and approved the final version of the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maria Helena Melo Lima.

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Conflict of interest

The authors have no affiliation with any organization with a direct or indirect financial interest in the subject matter discussed in the manuscript. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the local ethics committee (number: 89525518.8.1001.5404).

Informed consent.

Data are obtained from medical records with authorization and consent from the patients.

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Diabetes-Related Distress and Quality of Life among People with Type 2 Diabetes at primary care level in Brazil.

This article belongs to the topical collection Health Education and Psycho-Social Aspects, managed by Massimo Porta and Marina Trento.

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Neves, N.W.T., Breder, J.S.C., Oliveira, B.A. et al. Diabetes-related distress and quality of life among people with type 2 diabetes at primary care level in Brazil. Acta Diabetol 61, 461–471 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00592-023-02216-7

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