Prevalence of COVID-19 Infection in Type 2 Diabetes Patients and Their Anxiety Levels

Abstract

Purpose: This study was conducted to identify the prevalence of COVID-19 infection and anxiety levels in type 2 diabetes patients. Materials and methods: A total of 201 diabetes patients who presented to the internal medicine and endocrinology and metabolic diseases outpatient clinics of a university hospital between 19 October and 19 December 2020 were included in this descriptive and cross-sectional study. The data were collected using a Patient Identification Form and the Coronavirus Anxiety Scale. Chi-squared test and Fisher's exact test were used to compare the patients' COVID-19 infection status and anxiety levels based on some variables. Results: It was determined 37.8% of the participants had COVID-19 infection before. Among the participants who had COVID-19 infection, 51.3% stated that the COVID-19 infection aggravated their diabetes symptoms, and 13.2% said they received intensive care support due to the infection. Besides, it was found that 17.9% of the participants had high levels of anxiety. The participants who had COVID-19 before had a lower percentage of having any diabetes-related complication than those who never had COVID-19 before (p<0.05). Moreover, the rates of those who had COVID-19 before, those who thought of having adequate information about COVID-19 infection, and those who participated in the use of masks against the risk of COVID-19 infection were lower among the participants who had high levels of COVID-19 anxiety (p<0.05). Conclusions: It was discerned that the diabetes patients had a higher frequency of having experienced COVID-19 infection, and nearly onefifth of them had high levels of COVID-19-related anxiety. In this respect, following up diabetes patients at home during the COVID-19 pandemic and offering telehealth services to diabetes patients who are unable to visit healthcare facilities due to the pandemic is recommended. Keywords: COVID-19, anxiety, diabetes, frequency