Quality of life of patients with diabetes mellitus attending a tertiary hospital in Uyo, South–South Nigeria

Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the noncommunicable diseases that influence the quality of life (QoL) of people living with the disease. It is a known metabolic condition with a feature of excessive blood glucose levels due to defects in insulin production, insulin action, or both. Assessment of QoL is useful in the measurement of outcomes during the management of chronic diseases. Aim: This study aims at determining the QoL of patients with DM that presented at the general outpatient clinic (GOPC) of a tertiary hospital in South–South Nigeria. Patients, Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study of 134 patients suffering from DM who attended either the GOPCs or diabetic clinics of the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital was done between January and March 2018. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to obtain information from the respondents on sociodemographic characteristics, duration of DM, and presence or absence of hypertension. The following assessments were done on the respondents: blood pressure, body mass index, and glycated hemoglobin levels. The assessment of the QoL of patients was done using WHOQoL-Bref instrument. Descriptive statistics of the data was done. Mean and standard deviation (SD) were computed from the continuous variables, while frequency and percentages of categorical variables were also determined. Odds ratio was employed to compare differences in proportions or groups. The level of statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. Data analysis was done using Epi Info version 3.5.4. Results: The respondents consisted of 82 females and 52 males (M: F = 1:1.6) with a mean age of 54.79 (±SD 10.53) years. The overall QoL was good (91%). Poor monthly income was associated with poor QoL. Conclusion: The study finding indicated that poor income adversely affects the QoL of persons with DM. Chronic medical conditions such as DM require long-term care with financial/economic implications. Consequently, support systems (financial support inclusive) need to be strengthened for a better QoL.