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. 2021 Jun 4;18(11):6088.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph18116088.

Mental Health among Spanish Adults with Diabetes: Findings from a Population-Based Case-Controlled Study

Marta Lopez-Herranz  1 , Rodrigo Jiménez-García  2 , Zichen Ji  3 , Javier de Miguel-Diez  3 , David Carabantes-Alarcon  2 , Clara Maestre-Miquel  4 , José J Zamorano-León  2 , Ana López-de-Andrés  2
Affiliations

Mental Health among Spanish Adults with Diabetes: Findings from a Population-Based Case-Controlled Study

Marta Lopez-Herranz et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: The purpose of this study was to assess and compare the prevalence of self-reported mental disorders, psychological distress, and psychotropic drug consumption among people with diabetes mellitus (DM) and matched non-DM controls.

Methods: A case-controlled study using data from the Spanish National Health Interview Survey was conducted in 2017. We identified 2116 DM adults (aged ≥35 years). Non-DM controls were matched 1:1 by age, sex, and province of residence.

Results: Prevalence of mental disorders (25.0% vs. 19.2%; p < 0.001), psychological distress (29% vs. 19.5%; p < 0.001), and consumption of psychiatric medications (29.7% vs. 23.5%; p < 0.001) among DM cases were higher than those among matched non-DM controls. The DM patient variables associated with experiencing a mental disorder, psychological distress, and consumption of psychiatric medications were: being a woman, worse self-rated health, and a visit to a psychologist within the last year. Older age (≥80 years) was associated with a lower probability of reporting mental disorders and psychological distress among DM cases. Not practicing physical exercise was significantly associated with experiencing psychological distress.

Conclusions: Adults with DM included in our investigation have a significantly higher prevalence of mental disorders, psychological distress, and consumption of psychiatric medications than non-DM controls. It is necessary to implement screening strategies and psychological interventions to improve the mental health of DM patients in Spain, focusing especially on women and those aged 35 to 59 years.

Keywords: diabetes mellitus; mental disorders; prevalence; psychological distress; psychotropic drugs.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Prevalence of mental disorders according to sociodemographic variables among diabetes mellitus cases and controls.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Prevalence of psychological distress according to sociodemographic variables among diabetes mellitus cases and controls.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Prevalence of consumption of psychiatric medications according to sociodemographic variables among diabetes mellitus cases and controls.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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