Factors associated with Diabetes Mellitus among Patients Aged 18 to 60 years Attending Diabetic Clinic at Hoima Regional Referral Hospital-Hoima District
Makunda Ivan
Faculty of Clinical Medicine and Dentistry Kampala International University Western Campus Uganda
Diabetes mellitus often referred to simply as diabetes, is defined as a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin produced. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert or regulate sugar (glucose), starches, and other food into energy needed for daily life and if the body cells do not absorb the glucose, the glucose accumulates in the blood (hyperglycemia) causing severe adverse effects to many body systems including the nervous, digestive, circulatory, endocrine and urinary systems, but all body systems are in some way affected. Thus, diabetes is a metabolic and multi-system disorder. Type 2 results from the body’s ineffective use of insulin. It is common in middle-aged and later life, although it had been more frequently seen in adolescents and young adults due to an increase in child obesity and inactivity and comprises between 90% and 95% of people with diabetes around the world. This study aimed to determine the factors associated with diabetes mellitus among patients aged between 18 to 60 years attending diabetic clinics at Hoima Regional Referral Hospital. A cross-sectional study embracing both analytical and descriptive data was conducted whereby both qualitative and quantitative data were acquired using participant self-administered questionnaires and investigator-administered questionnaires using the convenience sampling technique. A total of 105 participants were studied, with a response rate of 97.1%. Results are depicted in 95% Confidence Intervals (C.I), Odd Ratios (OR), and P-values; all calculated using Binary Logistic Regression with Pearson’s correlation in the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20. Graphical representation was done by Microsoft Excel Software. A total of 105 participants was studied, with a response rate 97.1%. The results based on the 102 respondents showed that about 62(60.6%) of the respondents were female and 38(39.4%) were male. The mean age of the study population was 35 years with a standard deviation of 6.32 years. The significance of the associated factors was computed using Pearson’s correlation with the female gender being significant at P=0.021; increasing age being significant with a value of P=0.002; family history of diabetes being significant at P=0.027* with a 2-tailed test at 95% confidence level, P<0.05. The study showed that diabetes mellitus was highly associated with a positive family history of diabetes, the female gender, and social life.
Keywords: Diabetes mellitus, Insulin, Glucose, Female gender, Body systems
CITE AS: Makunda Ivan (2024). Factors associated with Diabetes Mellitus among Patients Aged 18 to 60 years Attending Diabetic Clinic at Hoima Regional Referral Hospital-Hoima District. NEWPORT INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH IN MEDICAL SCIENCES 5(1):95-105. https://doi.org/10.59298/NIJRMS/2024/95.10457.1400
