61% of Patients with Diabetes Are Apathetic Towards Glycemic Control

The primary objective was to determine the prevalence of apathy characterized by loss of initiative and motivation in patients with diabetes.

The secondary objective was to determine if there was an association between clinically significant apathy and factors that affect glycemic control.

A cross-sectional study of 100 patients with diabetes who were assessed with the Apathy Evaluation Scale-Clinician version (AES-C), the Hamilton Depression Scale (HAM-D), and the Self-Care Inventory (SCI). For this study we defined clinically significant apathy as AES-C score of >30. We excluded patients with a HAM-D score of >14 (n = 19) to avoid confounding from depression. T-tests were used to compare clinical characteristics between subjects with and without apathy. Multiple linear regression modeling was used to investigate the association between clinically significant apathy and factors that affect glycemic control.

Fifty (61.7% of 81) patients had clinically significant apathy. Compared to the non-apathetic patients, those with apathy had a higher mean BMI (30.5 kg/m2 versus 34.1 kg/m2 (p = 0.03)) and were less likely to adhere to an exercise plan (p = 0.01) or insulin regimen (p = 0.003). After adjustment for age, BMI, cholesterol, mild depression and the average Self-Care Index score, the mean HbA1C level was 0.66% greater for apathetic compared to non-apathetic subjects (P = 0.08).
From the results it was concluded that apathy is highly prevalent in patients with diabetes without depression. Apathy may have a negative impact on self-care behaviors and diabetes control.

Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice Volume 79, Issue 1, January 2008, Pages 37-41

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FACT:
Diabetes Stats: Diabetes causes blindness and nerve damage. Over 20,000 people a year are blinded by diabetes and almost 100,000 people suffer from lower limb extremity amputations each year. The statistics show it is a leading cause of nervous system damage to almost 60-70% of people with nervous system problems. Diabetes statistics in periodontal gum disease figures are rising also. Over 1/3 of diabetics have severe gum problems and disease.  It is known to cause major problems with pregnancies, in fact, 15-20% of cases have spontaneous abortions. If a diabetic woman does get pregnant, the risk is higher for birth defects in the babies also.