Study on quality of life in people with diabetes

quality of life in people with diabetes mellitus

January 2012

The DM, in its two varieties, type 1 and type 2, is a chronic disease of high and growing prevalence in the world population, which increases the morbidity and mortality of the people who suffer from it.A person with diabetes can present medical problems caused by acute decompensations of their disease, such as diabetic ketoacidosis or hyperosmolar hyperglycemic decompensation, or as a result of adverse effects derived from their medication, such as hypoglycemia.However, it is the vascular complications related to diabetes that cause the diabetic personrenal, neuropathies, among others) that significantly reduce their quality of life.

Taking as main objective the study the quality of life related to health (CVRS) of patients with DM, and comparing it with that of non -diabetic population, a study was carried out using data from a general health survey and comparing theCVRS of different risk groups.The chosen health survey was the Health Survey of Catalonia (ESCA) of the year 2006 given its suitability, both for the richness of sociodemographic, health status and diseases diagnosed in people surveyed and for having one of theQuality measurement instruments most used in national and international scientific literature: EQ-5D.For the analysis, a sample of 15,926 people, of which 6.4% had been diagnosed with DM.

To study whether health -related quality of life was different in diabetic people regarding non -diabetic people, a statistical analysis was carried out in order to control the effect of other sociodemographic variables such as age, sex or level of studies, among others.

The results found indicate that there is a significant and negative association between suffering from diabetes mellitus and the quality of life related to health.The most interesting thing about the study is subgroup analysis.Thus, a diabetic person but without any other vascular risk factor (not obese, not hypertensive, without high cholesterol) would not have a quality of life less than a non -diabetic person of similar socio -economic characteristics (that is, once the effects have been controlledof age, sex, level of studies, etc.).On the other hand, a diabetic person with added vascular risk factors has a lower quality of life between 0.05 and 0.06 points on a scale of 1 compared to a non -diabetic person without vascular risk factors and a diabetic person who has sufferedA vascular disease has a lower quality of life between 0.15 and 0.17 points on a scale of 1 compared to a non -diabetic person without vascular risk factors, which is a very strong deterioration in the quality of life related to thehealth.An interesting result is that non -diabetic people but with vascular risk factors or non -diabetic people who have suffered a vascular disease, also have a lower quality of life related to health compared to non -diabetic person and without vascular risk.However, deterioration is much lower compared to diabetic people.

Likewise, a relevant result is to know in what dimensions of the quality of life related to health are the biggest problems of people with DM and risk factors and/orVascular diseasesThus, the results of the work indicate that diabetic people have greater problems in mobility dimensions, self -care, daily activities and pain or discomfort, while no more likely to refer to anxiety or depression problems with respect to non -diabetic people.

The main message derived from the study is that the quality of life related to the health of a diabetic person does not have to be inferior to that of a non -diabetic person.Good control of diabetes mellitus, including also glycemic control, voltage control, cholesterol and overweight, together with the prevention of vascular events, are key factors associated with a better quality of life.On the contrary, greater vascular risk or the presence of a vascular disease is associated with important losses of quality of life in diabetic people.

The information generated should help promote the correct health care of people suffering from DM, starting by providing them with tools and resources that raise awareness of the relevance of their health problem and makes them experts in theManagement of the disease itself.

The knowledge of the loss of quality of life related to health in people suffering from diabetes mellitus must be an indicator that is integrated into the body of information that manages the health decisor so that their decisions are efficient from the social perspective.

Study financing: Novo Nordisk.
Work presented at the XXX Days of Health Economics held in Valencia, June 2010.
Currently sent to a scientific journal, in the evaluation phase.
Those readers interested in the results of the study can request them from the authors of the same.

Mixing type 1 diabetes with type 2 diabetes in a study on quality of life seems to me the beginning of a failure.

In general, type 1 diabetes has a high level of disease awareness. However, in type 2 diabetes it is commonly accepted that a large part of the patients do not consider their own pathology a disease (I have a little sugar, I have theHigh sugar but I take a pill ...)

Thus, it is not surprising that if parallel but separate studies were done, the results would be clearly differentiated.

It is a perogrullada (demonstrated in this study) to say that in the absence of complications the perception of health is good ... it was only missing that it was bad: !:!

The EQ-5D, is a great test to measure great populations ... is very simple, easy to understand and fill.
It measures 5 large dimensions: anxiety/depression, daily activities, pain, self -help and mobility
More information:

As a complement to an investigation, as a great investigation, it seems to me that it stays very much.
Always from my social psychology perspective ... because this study points more towards economic and profitability issues.

Even so, welcome are all studies on quality of life perceived by patients.