Fear of hypoglycemia and its determinants in insulin‐treated patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

• Published in: Journal of diabetes investigation Vol. 6; no. 5; pp. 567 - 570
• Main Authors: Sakane, Naoki, Kotani, Kazuhiko, Tsuzaki, Kokoro, Nishi, Masami, Takahashi, Kaoru, Murata, Takashi, Yamada, Kazunori, Okazaki, Kentaro, Yanagisawa, Katsuyuki, Yamada, Kenichi, Kuribayashi, Nobuichi, Totsuka, Yasuo, Hiyoshi, Toru, Naka, Motoji, Sugimoto, Masatake, Aoki, Yuji, Waki, Masako, Furuya, Miyuki, Kitaoka, Haruko, Oishi, Mariko, Shimizu, Ikki, Miyaoka, Hiroaki, Okada, Akira, Yamamoto, Toshikazu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01.09.2015; John Wiley & Sons, Ltd
• Subjects: Age; Alcohol; Cardiovascular disease; Diabetes; Diabetes mellitus; Diabetes mellitus (non-insulin dependent); Fear; Fear & phobias; Glucose; Hemoglobin; Hospitals; Hypoglycemia; Insulin; Marital status; Questionnaires; Standard deviation; Studies; Type 2 diabetes; United States > US; Japan; Type 2 diabetes; Fear; Hypoglycemia; Insulin
• ISSN: 2040-1116; 2040-1124
• DOI: 10.1111/jdi.12340

The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of fear of hypoglycemia, in association with severe hypoglycemia and social factors, in insulin‐treated patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A questionnaire survey on hypoglycemia and patient–physician communication was carried out in 355 patients with insulin‐treated type 2 diabetes mellitus patients at 16 hospitals and clinics. A fear of hypoglycemia was reported by 27.7% of patients. A stepwise logistic regression analysis found that severe hypoglycemia during the past 1 year was a significant determinant of fear of hypoglycemia (odds ratio 2.16, 95% confidence interval 1.06–4.41; P = 0.034), and age (odds ratio 1.02, 95% confidence interval 1.00–1.05, P = 0.038) and living alone (odds ratio 1.93, 95% confidence interval 1.00–3.73, P < 0.05) were significantly higher in patients with fear of hypoglycemia than in those without it. Age, living alone, the diabetes duration, and percentage of SH were significantly higher in patients with fear of hypoglycemia than in those without it. There were no significant differences in clinical characteristics, such as the prevalence of hypoglycemia, insulin regimen, and diabetic complications, between the patients with and without fear of hypoglycemia.