title: A prospective cross-sectional study on quality of life and treatment satisfaction in type 2 diabetic patients with retinopathy without other major late diabetic complications.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To assess quality of life and treatment satisfaction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus with diabetic retinopathy (DR) using validated instruments, with comparison to patients without DR.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective cross-sectional study was designed to assess the influence of retinopathy on quality of life and treatment satisfaction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who do not have any other advanced late complications that could interfere with these outcomes. We included 148 patients with DR and 149 without DR, all without other advanced diabetic complications. Quality of life was assessed using the Audit of Diabetes Dependent Quality of Life (ADDQoL) questionnaire, and treatment satisfaction was assessed using the Diabetes Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire (DTSQ). Clinical and treatment variables related to diabetes were also collected. The degree of DR was classified according to the International Clinical Classification System. Multivariate linear regression models were used to model the ADDQoL and DTSQ scores according to sociodemographical and clinical characteristics, and to model the adjusted relationship of DTSQ with ADDQoL. In DR patients, a subanalysis assessed the relationship of these scores with the degree of retinopathy, severity of macular edema, and previous photocoagulation treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  DR was associated with significantly lower quality of life (p < 0.001), when examining the two general quality of life items and most of the specific domains. Concerning DTSQ, no difference was found in the total score, and only two domains that assess the perception of glycemic control (hyper- and hypoglycemia) showed a worse score in DR (p < 0.001 and p = 0.008, respectively). Quality of life was significantly affected by the severity of DR, and treatment satisfaction was significantly affected by the severity of macular edema. In the multivariate analysis, a significant effect of the interaction between diabetes duration, insulin therapy, and the presence of DR was found for both, ADDQoL and DTSQ.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the absence of other major complications, DR has a negative impact on quality of life in patients with type 2 diabetes. Further, treatment satisfaction was not affected by the presence of DR.
authors.forename: Nuria
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Alcubierre
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Rubinat
authors.forename: Alicia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Traveset
authors.forename: Montserrat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Martinez-Alonso
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hernandez
authors.forename: Carmen
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jurjo
authors.affiliation: Institut de Recerca Biomèdica de Lleida, University of Lleida, Lleida, Spain. didacmauricio@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Didac
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mauricio
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology; D003930:Diabetic Retinopathy / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007328:Insulin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017060:Patient Satisfaction / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011788:Quality of Life; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents; D007328:Insulin