Diabetes in South African older adults: prevalence and impact on quality of life and functional disability – as assessed using SAGE Wave 1 data

Background: Diabetes is a chronic disease with severe late complications. It is known to impact the quality of life and cause disability, which may affect an individual’s capacity to manage and maintain longer-term health and well-being. Objectives: To examine the prevalence of self-report diabetes, and association between diabetes and each of health-related quality of life and disability amongst South Africa’s older adults. To study both the direct relationship between diabetes and these two measures, as well as moderation effects, i.e. whether associations between other factors and these measures of well-being differed between individuals with diabetes and those without. Methods: Secondary analyses of data on participants aged 50 years and older from the Study on global AGEing and adult health (SAGE) in South Africa Wave 1 (2007–2008) were conducted. Prevalence of self-reported diabetes was assessed. Multivariable regressions describe the relationships between each of quality of life (WHOQoL) and disability (WHODAS), and diabetes, while controlling for selected socio-demographic characteristics, health risk behaviours and co-morbid conditions. In the regression models, we also investigated whether diabetes moderates the relationships between these additional factors and WHOQoL/WHODAS. Results: Self-reported diabetes prevalence was 9.2% (95% CI: 7.8,10.9) and increased with age. Having diabetes was associated with poorer WHOQoL scores (additive effect: −4.2; 95% CI: −9.2,0.9; p-value <0.001) and greater disability (multiplicative effect: 2.1; 95% CI: 1.5,2.9; p-value <0.001). Lower quality of life and greater disability were both related to not being in a relationship, lower education, less wealth, lower physical activity and a larger number of chronic conditions. Conclusions: Diabetes is associated with lower quality of life and greater disability amongst older South Africans. Attention needs to be given to enhancing the capacity of health systems to meet the changing needs of ageing populations with diabetes in SA as well as facilitating social support networks in communities.