Moderating effect for illness uncertainty on the relationship of depressive and anxiety symptoms among patients with type 1 diabetes in Taif region, Saudi Arabia.

Background: Illness uncertainty was found to be associated with the development of depressive and anxiety symptoms among patients with type 1 diabetes and chronic illness in general. However, the moderating effect of illness uncertainty was not examined in sufficient depth. The current study evaluates how the path from diabetes distress to depression and anxiety is mediated by illness uncertainty, ambiguity, symptoms and course predictability, and illness complexity.

Method: Descriptive cross-sectional survey of a large-scale sample of patients living with type one diabetes in Saudi Arabia. We utilized structural equation modelling mediation analysis to examine the effect of illness uncertainty and its subcategories (illness-related ambiguity, symptoms and course predictability, and illness complexity) on depressive and anxiety symptoms.

Results: The current survey analyzed data pertaining to (n = 536) type one diabetes patients. Mean Mishel Uncertainty of Illness Scale score was 80.8 points (Cronbach's α = 0.91) signifying moderate uncertainty among our patients. Diabetes-related uncertainty was associated with marriage (t = 3.337, P = 0.0009937), diabetes complications (t = 5.257, P < 0.00001), pain (r = 0.2247, P < 0.00001), and children count (correlation coefficient r = 0.195, P < 0.00001). The prevalence of depression was (n = 367, 68.5%) and for anxiety was (n = 173, 30.3%). Illness uncertainty correlated with depressive (r = 0.2484, P < 0.00001) and anxiety (r = 0.2548, P < 0.00001) symptoms' scores. Illness uncertainty exerted a partial moderating effect on both anxiety (β = 0.060, P < 0.001) and depressive symptoms (β =0.056, P < 0.001). We observed a partial moderating effect for diabetes-related ambiguity and diabetes-related symptom unpredictability in terms of depressive and anxiety symptoms. However, for diabetes-related course unpredictability, the moderating effect was significant only for anxiety. Diabetes-related complexity did not exert a significant moderating effect on either depressive or anxiety symptoms.

Discussion: We confirmed high levels of depression and anxiety among patients with type one diabetes in Saudi Arabia. Our findings suggest that illness uncertainty affects both diabetes-related distress and depression constructs and is likely to be affected by them.