Diabetes-related-distress and its relationship with glycaemic control among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients attending a specialty clinic in Lagos, Nigeria

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is a chronic metabolic disease with various complications throughout its course. The presence of emotional burden in diabetes disease, which is referred to as diabetes-related distress (DRD) is common among such patients and may affect their response to treatment. Objectives: To assess the relationship of diabetes-related distress and glycaemic control among patients with Type 2 Diabetes mellitus. Methods: This hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted at the Family Medicine Department of LASUTH, Ikeja, Lagos. A total of 317 patients with Type 2 Diabetes mellitus were systematically recruited. The data were collected over a four-month period. Important clinical information including clinical characteristics and diabetes-related distress using the diabetes distress scale (DDS-17) was collected. Glycosylated haemoglobin (HbA1c) was also assessed. Results: The degrees of DRD were as follows: 54.9% (None/little), 40.1% (moderate) and 5.0% (severe). The mean HbA1c estimate for all participants was 7.83±1.8%. Among the 317 study participants, 67.2% had poor glycaemic control while 32.8% had good glycaemic control. There was a statistically significant association between DRD and glycaemic control (p< 0.001). Likewise, the various domains of DRD had statistically significant associations with glycaemic control with the exception of physician-related domain. Participants with better glycaemic control reported lower levels of DRD than participants with poorer glycaemic control. Conclusion: There is a high level of diabetes-related distress patients with diabetes mellitus. Good glycaemic control is important in improving or preventing DRD. Therefore, T2DM patients should be screened for DRD during their treatment.

Psychosocial factors associated with psychiatric morbidity in higher institution students in Nigeria

Introduction: Mental health disorders in undergraduates are often undetected and may predispose to other academic and social complications. The objective of the study is to determine the prevalence of probable psychiatric morbidity among students of University of Ilorin, Nigeria and the psycho-social factors that are associated with psychiatric morbidity in them. Methods: Socio-demographic questionnaire and the 12-item General health questionnaire (GHQ-12) were administered to 3,300 undergraduate students to assess psychosocial variables and psychiatric morbidity respectively. Results: About 23.5% of respondents scored >3 using the GHQ-12 questionnaire, signifying a likehood of psychiatric morbidity. Students from polygamous families were 1.3 times more likely to have GHQ scores of >3 than those from monogamous (OR=1.276, P=0.026). Those who had unemployed fathers were twice more likely to have a GHQ > 3 than those with employed fathers. (OR=2.084, P=0.005).Those who lived in houses with shared toilet facilities were 1.3 times more likely to have GHQ >3 (OR=1.310, P=0.028) Conclusion: This study calls for a careful consideration and modification of the various psychosocial factors associated with pschiatric morbidity in order to ensure a mentally healthy and vibrant student community