Knowledge and self-care in diabetes mellitus and their correlations with sociodemographic, clinical and treatment variables

Objective: To assess knowledge and self-care in diabetes mellitus, and to verify their correlations with sociodemographic, clinical and treatment variables. Methods: Cross-sectional and correlational study, involving 33 adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus in a city in the interior of Minas Gerais, Brazil. For data collection, instruments validated for Brazilian culture were used, applied through individual interviews. Results: Satisfactory knowledge about diabetes was obtained and self-care dimensions with the best performance were "general food" and "physical activity". There were correlations between knowledge and schooling time, income and insulin treatment, “general diet” with income, “medication” and “blood glucose monitoring” with insulin treatment, and monitoring was also correlated with the time of diagnosis. Conclusion: Identifying the interfering variables in the self-care process is essential for the success of educational actions in controlling the disease and promoting quality of life.