Profile of mood states in adult type 1 diabetes mellitus men and women with disease onset in childhood and in adulthood.

INTRODUCTION

Although diabetes may not be associated with psychopathology, it may be associated with less severe disturbances in psychosocial functioning. Emotional problems in relation to type 1 diabetes are usually analysed as symptoms of psychiatric conditions but not as states of mood. The aim was to compare profiles of mood states in adult patients with childhood-onset and adulthood-onset type 1 diabetes mellitus and to outline possible gender-specific differences.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS

A total of 214 adult type 1 diabetic patients were randomly selected from the Lithuanian Diabetes Registry. The mood states were compared in 105 (42 men and 63 women) patients with type 1 diabetes diagnosed during 0-18 years of life and in 109 (61 men and 48 women) diagnosed in adulthood. The scores of tension-anxiety, depression-dejection, anger-hostility, vigour-activity, fatigue-inertia and confusion-bewilderment were evaluated using the Profile of Mood States.

RESULTS

Depression-dejection was higher in adulthood-onset diabetic women than in childhood-onset (p=0.005) diabetic patients. In childhood-onset diabetic patients depression-dejection (p=0.046) and confusion-bewilderment (p=0.033) were higher in women than in men. Adulthood-onset women with diabetes had higher tension-anxiety (p=0.027), depression-dejection (p=0.001), and confusion-bewilderment (p=0.004) scores than men. Multiple logistic analyses showed that adulthood-onset period of type 1 diabetes is associated with higher levels of depression-dejection [OR=1.1; 95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.01-1.19, p=0.025], longer diabetes duration (OR=2.00; 95% CI 1.27-2.03, p=0.012), higher HbA1c level (OR=1.15; 95% CI 1.02-1.3, p=0.023), and female gender (OR=2.51; 95% CI 1.29-2.90, p=0.021).

CONCLUSIONS

Profile of mood states in adult women with type 1 diabetes is worse than in men. Adulthood-onset type 1 diabetic women have higher depression-dejection than do childhood-onset diabetic patients. Adulthood-onset period of type 1 diabetes is associated with higher levels of depression-dejection, longer diabetes duration and female gender.