Assessment of diabetes-related distress among type 2 diabetic patients, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVES: To assess the prevalence of diabetes-related distress (DRD) among Type 2 diabetics in the diabetic center of King Salman Hospital, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. METHODS: This was an observational descriptive study conducted between December 2019 and January 2020 among T2DM patients followed up at the diabetic clinics of the Diabetic Center of King Salman Hospital in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We used the 17-items Diabetes Distress Scale (DDS17) to measure DRD. RESULTS: A total of 399 T2DM patients were included in the study, 58.4% were males. High distress was seen in 40 patients. Multivariate analysis showed that longer duration of diabetes (>15 years), female gender, longer intervals in-between visits (>6 months), and experience of episodes of severe hypoglycemia as the most significant factors related to higher levels of distress. The patients who were diabetics longer than 15 years had an increased risk for high distress by 3.6 times, infrequent clinic visits (longer than 6 months) increased the risk for high distress by 5.3 times×, and patients who experienced severe hypoglycemia had an increased risk for high distress by 5.8 times. CONCLUSION: This study showed a high (35.6%) prevalence of moderate to severe DRD. Long-standing diabetes, a longer interval of a clinic visit, and severe hypoglycemia increase the risk for DRD by 3.6, 5.3, and 5.8 folds. Health care providers should focus on reducing DRD and devise ways to increase self-care practices and coping skills.