The Relationship Between Social Capital and Hypertension Among Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients: The Moderating Effect of Depressive Symptoms.

PURPOSE

This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between social capital (SC) and hypertension among type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients, considering the moderation effects of depressive symptoms.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 1761 Chinese T2DM patients completed measure scales of social capital and epidemiological survey depression scale (CES-D). The Bootstrap methods PROCESS program is employed to test the moderation model.

RESULTS

The prevalence of hypertension among T2DM patients was 39.3%. The SC was negatively correlated with the CES-D score (r=-0.18, P<0.01); the SC was also negatively correlated with diastolic blood pressure (r=-0.05, P<0.05); and the CES-D score was positively correlated with systolic blood pressure (r=0.05, P<0.05). Both logistic regression analysis and the Bootstrap method showed that depressive symptoms weakened the protective effect of SC on hypertension, there existed a moderating effect of depressive symptoms on the relationship between SC and hypertension among T2DM patients.

CONCLUSION

Depressive symptoms may be one crucial moderator of the relationship between SC and hypertension in a representative sample of Chinese diabetes patients. The findings indicate that improving SC and mental health may help manage hypertension among T2DM patients.