QUALITY OF LIFE IN YOUTHS WITH INSULIN-DEPENDENT DIABETES MELLITUS (ADOLESCENTS).
Contributors: University of Tennessee Center for the Health Sciences.
Published: 1996
Number of pages: 141
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Health Sciences, Public Health.
Description: This study describes the self-reported quality of life (QOL) in youths aged 11-14 years with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), compared QOL of these individuals with self-matched peers, and determined the association of demographic and IDDM-related variables with differing QOL in subgroups of youths with IDDM.

A descriptive correlational design including 60 subjects with IDDM and 27 matched peers was used to explore this research problem. Data were obtained from two instruments, one IDDM-specific and the other generic, and analyzed by descriptive statistics, analysis of variance (ANOVA) paired t-tests, and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA).

Subjects' mean instrument scale scores indicated moderately good QOL. On the five point IDDM-specific scales for which lower scores indicate increasingly better QOL, mean scores achieved by this sample were 2.06 (impact of IDDM) and 1.59 (worries related to IDDM), while on the five point IDDM-specific scale (life satisfaction) for which higher scores indicate increasingly better QOL, the mean subject score was 3.98.

The generic instrument included six scales containing items with a four point response format in which higher scores indicated increasingly better QOL. Mean subject scores on this instrument ranged from 2.91 points to 3.33 points, well above the "neutral" midpoints of 2.0 points. Although mean scores indicated moderately good overall QOL, many specific areas of concern were noted by substantial percentages of subjects. Examples included feelings that parents were overprotective (35%), excessive parental worry related to the youth's IDDM (45%), desire for different height or weight (47%), and doing things that should not be done (35%). No significant differences in QOL, as determined by mean scale scores, were found between the subjects and their non-IDDM peers.

Several associations between various subgroups of subjects and particular variables were apparent. For example, lower average number of school absences per month (one or no absences per month) were associated with decreased impact from IDDM, decreased worries about IDDM, and increased satisfaction with life. Additionally, less impact from IDDM and fewer worries about IDDM were associated with lower age range (11 and 12 years) and female sex. Increased satisfaction with one's physical appearance and better behavioral conduct were related to small household size (2-3 person family) and the presence of at least one parent with a college degree.

It was concluded that QOL of youths with IDDM is self-assessed to be moderately good, and is comparable to that of non-IDDM peers. Youths with IDDM have specific concerns related to the various dimensions of their QOL. Although some of these concerns are directly related to IDDM and its management, many, such as the desire for greater athletic ability, appear to be common to many individuals of their age group. Several socio-demographic and IDDM-related variables were associated with varying QOL in subgroups of youths with IDDM. All three scales from the IDDM-related instrument were associated with particular IDDM-related and socio-demographic variables, while the scales from the generic instrument sampling the subjects' perceptions about their physical appearance and behavioral conduct demonstrated relationships with the socio-demographic variables of household size and parental educational level. Additionally, conduct was also associated with the occupation of the subject's parents.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 57-10, Section: B, page: 6178.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE CENTER FOR THE HEALTH SCIENCES, 1996.

School code: 0783.