Title:Factors Influencing Adherence Among Youth with Type-1-Diabetes Mellitus - The Hungarian Case
Volume: 17
Issue: 2
Author(s): Beáta E. Nagy , Brigitta Munkácsi and Karolina Eszter Kovács*
Affiliation:
- Institute of Educational and Cultural Sciences, Faculty of Arts, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, Egyetem ter 1. 4032,Hungary
Keywords:
Type-1-diabetes, adherence, mental health, insulin pump, socio-economic background, early diagnosis, therapy.
Abstract:
Background and Introduction: Due to the increasing prevalence of type-1-diabetes, an increasing
number of studies have drawn attention to its psychological effects and long-term consequences.
As Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus is a chronic, non-curable, yet maintainable condition, with the
affected children and their families facing a lifelong challenge, our research focuses on the factors influencing
adherence.
Methods: The adherence of youth was examined in a sample involving 114 patients treated in the
Medical and Health Science Centre at the University of Debrecen by employing a new adherence questionnaire
(DAQ abbreviated version, Munkácsi et al. 2019) (DAF 2017; N=114). The influence of socio-
demographic variables and those related to the disease (age at the time of diagnosis, the time elapsed
since diagnosis, method of treatment, the time elapsed since the use of the pump) was measured by linear
regression. Furthermore, the between-group comparisons were made by independent sample t-tests and
variance analysis. The investigation was carried out between September 2017 and May 2018.
Results: The effect of using insulin pump as therapy turned out to be significant and positive (0.36.
p=0.045). It was observed that the adherence of the patients using insulin pump was higher while the
effect of the age at the diagnosis had a significantly negative effect (-.247, p=0.035). Thus, earlier detection
of the disease may lead to a higher level of adherence. The effects of the socio-demographic
variables (gender, family structure, educational level, type of the settlement, owning sibling and birth
order) were not significant (p>0.05). Regarding the between-group comparisons, a significant difference
could be pointed out concerning the siblings and birth-order as the adherence of those with siblings
was higher (p=0.044). Moreover, concerning insulin pump therapy, the adherence of patients using
pump was significantly better (p=0.048). Also, regarding the age of the diagnosis, the adherence of
those diagnosed before 12 was seemingly higher (p=0.039). Concerning the other socio-demographical
and disease-related variables, no significant differences could be detected.
Conclusion: The results suggest that the treatment has an outstanding role in the adherence of the disease.
Moreover, the role of the appropriate treatment, living conditions as well as the early diagnosis is
relevant.