Prevalence and determinants of depression among patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus attending family medicine clinics in Qatar

Aims

To assess the prevalence of depression and its associated factors among patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus attending family medicine clinics in Qatar

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to April 2021 where 683 adult patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus were selected by cluster sampling technique using probability-proportionate to size sampling. Diabetes mellitus was defined as having HA1c of greater than or equal to 6.5%, and patients were assessed for depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. The relationship between depression, glycemic control, and background characteristics was analyzed using Chi-square, and binary logistic regression analyses. Adjusted logistic regression models estimated the significant factors that were independently associated with depression.

Results

20.1% of the study participants had depression with the vast majority of them having mild depression (70.8%). More than three-quarters had uncontrolled diabetes mellitus (81.5%). Male patients were at higher risk for developing depression (AOR =1.98, 1.25-3.14) when compared to female patients. On the other hand, being Qatari was associated with a lower risk for depression compared to non-Qatari patients (AOR =0.56, 0.34—0.90), and treatment with insulin-containing regimens was associated with a lower risk for depression as compared to treatment with non-insulin- containing regimens (AOR =0.49, 0.30-0.78).

Conclusions

Prevalence of depression among patients with Type 2 diabetes attending family medicine clinics in Qatar is high. Therefore, utilizing a multidisciplinary health care plan for screening and management of depression in patients with diabetes in a primary health care setting is highly recommended.

Funding

The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.