Quality of life in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients requiring insulin treatment in Buenos Aires, Argentina: a cross-sectional study

ANDRES PICHON RIVIERE; IRAZOLA V; BERATARRECHEA A; ALCARAZ A; CARRARA C

JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY

KERMAN UNIVERSITY OF MEDICAL SCIENCE

Año: 2015

0197-5897

Background: Decision-makers have begun to recognize Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL) as animportant and measurable outcome of healthcare interventions; and HRQoL data is increasingly beingused by policy-makers to prioritize health resources. Our objective was to measure HRQoL in a group ofType 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) patients receiving insulin treatment in Buenos Aires, Argentina.Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of patients with T2DM over 21 years of age, treatedwith either Neutral Protamine Hagedorn (NPH) insulin or Insulin Glargine (IG), who had not changedtheir baseline schedule in the last 6 months. The recruitment was during 2006?7 in nine private diabetesspecialists? offices in Buenos Aires, Argentina. A standardized diabetes-specific HRQoL questionnaire,the Audit of Diabetes Dependent Quality of Life (ADDQoL), was used.Results: A total of 183 patients were included (93 receiving NPH and 90 receiving IG). The mean QoLscore was: 0.98 (SD: 0.89) and the diabetes specific QoL was: -1.49 (SD: 0.90). T2DM had a negativeimpact on HRQoL with a mean Average Weighted Impact (AWI) score on QoL of -1.77 (SD: 1.58). Thegreatest negative impact was observed for domains: ?worries about the future?, ?freedom to eat?, ?livingconditions?, ?sex life?, and ?family life?. The mean AWI score was -1.71 (SD: 1.48) in patients treated with IGand -1.85 (SD: 1.68) in patients receiving NPH, this difference was not statistically significant.Conclusion: The ADDQoL questionnaire is a tool that can be used in Argentina to measure the QoLof patients with diabetes when evaluating diabetes care programs. The scores of QoL in our selectedpopulation did not differ from those reported in high-income countries. We expect that the results of thisstudy will increase healthcare providers? awareness of patients? perceived QoL and help to overcome thebarriers that delay insulin treatment; mainly clinical inertia and patient resistance.Keywords: Quality of Life (QoL), Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM), Audit of Diabetes Dependent Qualityof Life (ADDQoL), Argentina