Attitudes on Diabetes Among Type 2 Diabetic Patients in Karbala City

Abstract

Background: Diabetes is a serious health problem that has reached an alarming scale, with over 500 million individuals affected globally. Type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes, accounting for over 90% of all diabetes worldwide. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has the greatest regional prevalence of diabetes (16.2%) and the second-largest expected increase (86%) in the number of people with diabetes. 

Objective: This study aims to assess the attitude toward diabetes among type 2 diabetic patients in Karbala City and the factors associated with their attitude.

Patients and methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 252 type 2 diabetic patients in multiple health institutes in Karbala City through face-to-face interviews using a questionnaire developed by the University of Michigan Diabetes Research and Training Center (MDRTC). SPSS version 22.00 was used to perform statistical analysis. The means of the groups were compared using independent samples t‑test and ANOVA. Pearson’s rank correlation coefficient test was used to show relationships between diabetic attitude scores, glycated hemoglobin, fasting blood sugar, and random blood sugar.

Results: The mean age of the patients was 56 ± 9.83 years. 64.3% of the patients were female. The mean duration of diabetes was 10.1 ± 6.82 years. The mean attitude score for the patients was 31.55 ± 6.18 out of 50. The majority of patients (72.6%) had a moderate attitude level. 

Conclusion: Continuous education programs and healthcare attention are needed to enhance patients' attitudes toward the disease and its complications, especially female patients, those with low educational levels, housewives, those not working, those with lower economic status, those with longer diabetes duration, those who take insulin as treatment, and those who have complications.