Abstract
OBJECTIVES:Diabetes is a major public health problem that is approaching epidemic proportions globally. Diabetes self-management can reduce complications and mortality in type 2 diabetic patients. The purpose of this study was to examine associations between diabetes self-management and microvascular complications in patients with type 2 diabetes.METHODS:In this cross-sectional study, 562 Iranian patients older than 30 years of age with type 2 diabetes who received treatment at the Diabetes Research Center of the Endocrinology and Metabolism Research Institute of the Tehran University of Medical Sciences were identified. The participants were enrolled and completed questionnaires between January and April 2014. Patients’ diabetes self-management was assessed as an independent variable by using the Diabetes Self-Management Questionnaire translated into Persian. The outcomes were the microvascular complications of diabetes (retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy), identified from the clinical records of each patient. A multiple logistic regression model was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) between diabetes self-management and the microvascular complications of type 2 diabetes, adjusting for potential confounders.RESULTS:After adjusting for potential confounders, a significant association was found between the diabetes self-management sum scale and neuropathy (adjusted OR, 0.64; 95% CI, 0.45 to 0.92, p=0.01). Additionally, weak evidence was found of an association between the sum scale score of diabetes self-management and nephropathy (adjusted OR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.47 to 1.05, p=0.09).CONCLUSIONS:Among patients with type 2 diabetes, a lower diabetes self-management score was associated with higher rates of nephropathy and neuropathy.
Highlights
Diabetes is a common chronic disease that poses major health problems worldwide and has been called a silent epidemic by the World Health Organization [1]
The outcomes were the microvascular complications of diabetes, including retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy, as identified from clinical patient records, and the exposure was the diabetes self-management score
Lower diabetes self-management scores were associated with microvascular complications in patients with type 2 diabetes
Summary
Diabetes is a common chronic disease that poses major health problems worldwide and has been called a silent epidemic by the World Health Organization [1]. The prevalence of diabetes throughout the world, including Iran, is increasing [2]. The reported overall prevalence of diabetes in the US was 5.8% in 2012 [3], while the prevalence of diabetes in Iran was 10.9% in 2011 [4]. Patients with diabetes have a high risk of developing long-term Glycemic control reduces the risk of microvascular complications, which include retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy [8]
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