BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease requiring continuous treatment and vigorous self-management. Reinforcement of effective self management and diabetes education are important factors in successful treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the current diabetes education program on blood glucose control, self-management, and self-efficacy of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. METHODS: A total of 592 patients with newly diagnosed or uncontrolled type 2 diabetes mellitus were recruited to the diabetes education program from January to December 2007. We surveyed 338 patients from April to July 2008. A total of 117 patients had biochemical examinations and completed a questionnaire about knowledge, self-management and self-efficacy of diabetes treatment (no education group (n = 23), education group (n = 94)). RESULTS: The total scores from the questionnaires and the results of laboratory data showed no differences between the two groups. However, there were significant reductions in hemoglobin A1c level in the education group, as compared with the no education group (P = 0.039). Although the score for knowledge about diabetes mellitus was significantly higher in the education group (P = 0.005), greater knowledge was not reflected in the self-management or self-efficacy of the patients. CONCLUSION: The current diabetes education program had no effect on the self-management or self-efficacy of patients with diabetes, although did show some degree of association with blood glucose control and diabetes knowledge level. We conclude that a more effective diabetes education program needs to be developed and applied to daily practice for the improvement ofself-efficacy in patients with diabetes mellitus.
Blood Glucose ; Chronic Disease ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; Hemoglobins ; Humans ; Reinforcement (Psychology) ; Self Care ; Self Efficacy ; Surveys and Questionnaires

INTRODUCTIONDiabetes mellitus (DM) is a serious chronic illness that has a major impact on the quality of life of the individuals. Our aim was to examine the determinants of health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in patients with DM.

MATERIALS AND METHODSAdult outpatients attending a Diabetes Centre were recruited on consecutive basis between August 2006 and February 2007. Clinical data were collected from interviews with the subjects and from medical records. Assessment of depressive symptoms was done using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and HRQOL using the Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36). A two-step regression analysis was conducted for identifying factors affecting patients' quality of life.

RESULTSFive hundred and thirty-seven patients participated in the study. The mean (SD) age of the participants was 54.7 (13.3) years and 315 (58.7%) were males. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 31.1% (n = 167). After adjusting for other variables, the effects of depressive symptoms persisted for all the 8 domains of SF-36 (P <0.001 for all). The medical factors that were negatively associated with HRQOL were a diagnosis of Type 1 DM, duration of the illness of more than 10 years, HbA1c levels of ≥7%, and comorbidity of stroke and retinopathy. Being male and a regular exerciser had a positive effect on HRQOL.

CONCLUSIONThese findings highlight the importance of detecting and treating comorbid depression in DM.

Adult ; Aged ; Depression ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; epidemiology ; physiopathology ; psychology ; Female ; Health Status ; Health Surveys ; Humans ; Interviews as Topic ; Male ; Medical Records ; Middle Aged ; Quality of Life ; Singapore ; epidemiology

OBJECTIVE: To assess the level of diabetes knowledge, attitude and self-management activities of the patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and explore the correlation between diabetes knowledge, attitude and self-care. METHODS: Totally 200 T2DM patients finished the questionnaires, including the demographic information questionnaire, the Audit of Diabetes Knowledge (ADKnowl), the third version of Diabetes Attitude scale (DAS-3) and the Summary of Diabetes Self-Care Activities (SDSCA). RESULTS: The ADKnowl score was 68.06±10.07. The DAS-3 score was 122.60±5.66. The SDSCA score was 57.98±15.30. Education level, duration of diabetes, complications and periodic review were the influential factors for self-care behaviors. The score of self-care behaviors was positively related to diabetes knowledge (r=0.176, P<0.05) and attitude (r=0.256, P<0.01). CONCLUSION Diabetes knowledge and self-care behaviors in the vast majority of T2DM patients are at a low level. Medical staff should not only emphasize the diabetes knowledge, but also pay enough attention to the attitude of T2DM patients and improve their self-care behaviors.
China ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; psychology ; Female ; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice ; Humans ; Male ; Self Care ; statistics & numerical data ; Surveys and Questionnaires

OBJECTIVE: To establish an interference mode of group counseling for diabetic patients with depression and to evaluate the effectiveness of this mode on depression, treatment compliance and blood sugar level in the patients.
 METHODS: One hundred diabetic patients with depression were randomly divided into a counseling group and a control group (n=50 per group). Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS) was applied to all the patients. The interference mode of group counseling was established through literature review, expert consultation or interview. The counseling group received counseling for 8 times within 2 months.
 RESULTS: There was a significant difference in the SDS scores at 0, 3, 6 or 12 months after the intervention between the 2 groups (P<0.001). For the counseling group, there was a significant difference in the SDS scores between pre-intervention and 3, 6 or 12 months after intervention (P<0.001). However, there was no significant difference in the SDS scores between any two time points after the intervention (P>0.05). There was a significant difference in the compliance between any two time points after the intervention (P<0.05). Fasting blood glucose (FBG), 2 h postprandial blood glucose (2hPG) or glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) was significantly different at any two time points after the intervention (P<0.05).
 CONCLUSION Group counseling can improve depression, compliance and blood sugar control in the diabetic patients.
Blood Glucose ; analysis ; Counseling ; Depression ; therapy ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; psychology ; therapy ; Glycated Hemoglobin A ; analysis ; Humans ; Patient Compliance ; Psychotherapy, Group

OBJECTIVE: To develop a specific quality of life scale for Chinese Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) patients. METHODS: According to the quality of life definition of WHO, we used methods adhered to the rigorous guidelines of instrument development in item pool formation, item selection and scale validation with the data of 236 Type 2 diabetic patients recruited. RESULTS: An 87-item Quality of Life Scale for patients with Type 2 DM-prior test version ( DMQLS), including 5 domains ( disease, physical, social, psychological, and satisfaction ) was developed and showed good reliability and validity. The disease domain made up of Type 2 diabetes mellitus-specific sub-scale and the other 4 domains formed the generic sub-scale for adults. The test-retest correlation coefficient, Cronbach's Alpha coefficient and split-half reliability coefficient of DMQLS were 0.996, 0.969 and 0.879, respectively. Twenty-one common factors were extracted according to the conceptual model. The scale's correlations with SF-36 and Diabetes Quality of Life Measure ( DQOL ) were 0.763 and 0.658. DMQLS could discriminate among those with different quality of lives. CONCLUSION DMQLS is reliable, valid and sensitive, and can be used to evaluate the curative effect of Type 2 diabetic patients.
Adult ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; psychology ; Evaluation Studies as Topic ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Psychometrics ; Quality of Life ; Reproducibility of Results ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; standards

This article reviews the clinical and experimental researches on cognitive impairment related to diabetes in the recent decade. Most clinical studies indicate that the cognitive impairment in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus is related to recurrent hypoglycemia closely. There is little research about whether or not hyperglycemia is related to cognitive impairment in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Most studies indicate that the cognitive impairment in type 2 diabetes involves multiple factors through multiple mechanisms, including blood glucose, blood lipid, blood pressure, level of insulin, medication, chronic complication, etc. But, there has been no large-scale, multi-center, randomized controlled clinical trial in China recently. And what is more, some problems exist in this field of research, such as the lack of golden criterion of cognitive function measurement, different population of studied objects, and incomprehensive handling of confounding factors. Experimental studies found that hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) was impaired, which were manifested by impairment of spatial memory and decreased expression of LTP, but it's relation to hyperglycemia, the duration of diabetes, learning and memory has always been differently reported by different researches. Thus, there are a lot of unknown things to be explored and studied in order to clarify its mechanism. TCM has abundant clinical experience in treating cerebral disease with medicine that enforces the kidney and promotes wit. However, there has been no research on treating diabetic cognitive impairment, which requires work to be done actively and TCM to be put into full play, in order to improve the treatment of diabetes and enhance living quality of patients.
Animals ; Cognition Disorders ; etiology ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental ; pathology ; physiopathology ; psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 ; pathology ; physiopathology ; psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; pathology ; physiopathology ; psychology ; Drugs, Chinese Herbal ; therapeutic use ; Hippocampus ; pathology ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Hyperglycemia ; complications ; Hypoglycemia ; complications ; Long-Term Potentiation ; Neuronal Plasticity

PURPOSE: To examine the psychometric properties of a Turkish version of the Diabetes Fear of Injecting and Self-testing Questionnaire (D-FISQ). METHODS: Forward-backward translation of the D-FISQ from English into Turkish was conducted. Original English and translated forms were examined by a panel group. Validity was investigated using content, confirmatory factor analysis, and divergent validity. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach α values, item-total correlations, and intraclass correlations. The sample comprised 350 patients with diabetes. Data were analyzed using SPSS 15.0 for Windows and LISREL 8. RESULTS: The content validity index for the panel members was .90, which indicated perfect content validity; items in D-FISQ were clear, concise, readable, and distinct. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the original construct of the D-FISQ. All items had factor loadings higher than the recommended level of .40. The D-FISQ scores were discriminated by the level of anxiety. Reliability results were also satisfactory. Cronbach α values were within ideal limits. Item-total correlation coefficient ranged from .72 to .86. In terms of test-retest reliability, intraclass correlation coefficient was found to be over .90. CONCLUSIONS: D-FISQ is a valid and reliable questionnaire in assessing needle-prick fear among Turkish patients with diabetes. We recommend performing the Turkish D-FISQ in determining and screening patients with diabetes who have fear related to self-insulin injection and finger-prick test. Thus, health care professionals should be aware of the potential consequences of injection fear such as insulin misuse and poor self-monitoring of blood glucose, which may have unfavorable effects on optimal diabetes management.
Anxiety/etiology ; Blood Glucose Self-Monitoring/psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1/drug therapy/*psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/drug therapy/*psychology ; *Fear ; Female ; Humans ; Hypoglycemic Agents/administration & dosage ; Injections/psychology ; Insulin/administration & dosage ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Psychometrics ; Reproducibility of Results ; Self Care/psychology ; Surveys and Questionnaires/standards ; Translations ; Turkey

INTRODUCTIONThe Diabetes Health Profile-18 (DHP-18) measures diabetes-related psychological well-being in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). It includes 3 subscales: psychological distress (PD), barriers to activity and disinhibited eating. The psychometric properties of the DHP have not been evaluated in Asia. The aim of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of the DHP in multiethnic Singapore.

MATERIALS AND METHODSPatients between the ages of 18 to 65 diagnosed with diabetes (either type 1 or type 2) for at least 1 year were recruited from a diabetes outpatient clinic in a tertiary hospital. They completed a set of self-administered questionnaires including sociodemographic information and the DHP. Validity of the DHP was evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Reliability was assessed with internal consistency and sensitivity was determined by effect size, associated with detecting a statistically significant and clinically important difference between various patient subgroups.

RESULTSA total of 204 patients with mean age 45.4 (11.9) years, comprising 64% males and 50% Chinese, 27% Indian and 12% Malay were studied. In CFA, model fit was poor. Forced 3-factor EFA supported the original 3-factor structure of the DHP. Convergent and discriminant validity was demonstrated (100% scaling success). DHP was sensitive across majority of social demographic, clinical and social-functioning determinants (i.e., effect size >0.3). Cronbach's alpha exceeded 0.70 for all subscales. Ceiling effects were negligible but large floor effects were seen for the PD subscale (23%).

CONCLUSIONThe DHP is valid, reliable and sensitive for measuring well-being in Asian patients with T2DM.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 ; psychology ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 ; psychology ; Emotional Adjustment ; Ethnic Groups ; psychology ; statistics & numerical data ; Factor Analysis, Statistical ; Feeding Behavior ; psychology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Psychological Tests ; Psychometrics ; Reproducibility of Results ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Singapore ; Stress, Psychological ; diagnosis ; etiology ; psychology ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Young Adult

PURPOSE: The purpose of the study was to identify the effects of problem solving nursing counseling and intensified walking exercise on diabetic self-care, coping strategies, and glycemic control among older adults with DM type II. METHOD: Ninety nine DM patients who were older than 50 were recruited from DM clinics or public health centers and conveniently assigned into three groups: the Polar(n=41), counseling(n=30) and control groups (n=28). Participants in both Polar and counseling groups attended weekly problem solving nursing counseling for 12 weeks. Polar heart rate monitors were used in the Polar group to intensify walking exercise. Data was collected from November 2003 to August 2004 and analyzed by ANOVA or ANCOVA using the SPSS WIN program. RESULT: After a 12 week intervention, participants in both the Polar and counseling groups reported increased diabetic self care behaviors and decreased blood glucose levels, which is significantly different from those in the control group. There were no distinctively different program effects between the Polar and counseling groups. CONCLUSION: Based on the findings, we concluded that problem solving counseling alone could have positive effects on diabetic self care and glycemic controls for older adults with DM. Future research is needed to identify long-term effects of the program.
Walking ; *Self Care ; *Problem Solving ; Middle Aged ; Male ; Humans ; Female ; *Exercise ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/blood/*nursing/psychology ; *Counseling ; Blood Glucose/*analysis ; Aged ; *Adaptation, Psychological

We aimed; 1) to determine the validity of the EuroQol 5D (EQ-5D) for the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) of Korean patients with type 2 diabetes, and 2) to identify associated factors of the HRQOL of these patients. Follow-up surveys were conducted for consecutive patients with type 2 diabetes. HRQOL was assessed using the EQ-5D and the Short Form-36 (SF-36). The validity of EQ-5D was assessed with the perspectives of known group, convergent and discriminant validity. Additionally, a linear mixed model using a backward elimination was used for identify associated factors. Of the 1,072 patients included in the first survey, 858 (80.0%) completed the questionnaires in the follow-up. In the known group validity, the problem rates in each EQ-5D dimension were highest among women, elderly people, and less-educated subjects. The Spearman's rho between the EQ-5D and the SF-36 scales were larger in the comparable dimensions than those in the less comparable dimensions. In the final model, we found that sex, age, education, body mass index, atrial fibrillation, stroke, and retinopathy were statistically significant. Our data suggest that the EQ-5D is a valid tool for Korean patients with type 2 diabetes and that various factors could affect their HRQOL.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/complications/*physiopathology/psychology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; *Quality of Life ; Quality-Adjusted Life Years ; *Questionnaires ; Republic of Korea ; Young Adult