The association between diabetes-related distress and fear of hypoglycaemia in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A cross-sectional descriptive study.
Shuang Li, Li Fang, Amanda Lee and 9 others
PMID 33605564WHAT IT FOUND
Patients with type 2 diabetes who had recent low blood sugar episodes reported higher fear of hypoglycaemia alongside higher diabetes distress.
The link held when age, clinical and lifestyle factors were considered.
Key findings
01Moderate to severe diabetes distress was present in 60.47% of participants.
02Diabetes distress was strongly positively correlated with total fear of hypoglycaemia scores (r = .749, p < .001).
03After adjustment, patients in the 4th quartile of fear, worry or behaviour scores were more likely to have higher distress.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study measured fear and distress at one time, so it cannot show which came first or whether fear caused distress. Hypoglycaemia episodes were based on patient recollection, which may be inaccurate. Participants were recruited from one province in China, so results may not apply elsewhere. All participants had experienced hypoglycaemia in the past half-year, so findings may not apply to people without recent episodes. The paper did not test screening or education, so it cannot show these actions reduce distress.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as proof that fear of hypoglycaemia causes diabetes distress or that education reduces distress. The study measured both at one time, used self-reported hypoglycaemia history, and did not test an intervention.