The Effect of Attitude to Death on Self-Management in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The effect of sleep quality on attitudes toward death in breast cancer survivors

PURPOSE

The aim of this study was to determine the levels of sleep quality and attitudes toward death among breast cancer survivors and to examine the impact of sleep quality on attitudes toward death.

METHODS

This descriptive and correlational study was conducted with 117 patients who had been treated for breast cancer in radiation oncology. Data were collected using a Demographic Information Form, the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and the Death Attitude Profile-Revised Scale.

RESULTS

The mean score for sleep quality among breast cancer survivors was 15.17 ± 3.96, while the mean score for the Death Attitude Profile-Revised was 137.65 ± 30.74. Sleep quality was associated with marital status, place of residence, perception of economic status, presence of social support, time since diagnosis, body mass index, and other factors (p < 0.05). Attitudes toward death were associated with age, educational level, occupation, place of residence, perception of economic status, comorbidity, histopathological stage, chemotherapy status, type of breast surgery, and other factors (p < 0.05). Additionally, a moderately positive correlation was found between sleep quality and attitudes toward death among women undergoing breast cancer treatment (r = 0.368, p < 0.001). It was determined that patients' sleep quality, education status, and comorbidity had a significant effect on attitudes toward death and the variables explained 29.4% of the variance (R2 = 0.294) (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

This study shows that there is a significant relationship between sleep quality and attitudes toward death in cancer patients and that sleep quality affects attitudes toward death. In addition, when evaluating the sleep quality and attitudes toward death of women treated for breast cancer, taking into account their sociodemographic characteristics and treatment characteristics may contribute positively to the recovery process and quality of life.

COVID-19 epidemic investigation study of a follow-up cohort of patients with diabetic kidney disease

Introduction

The impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on diabetic kidney disease (DKD) patients in China is not fully understood. This study aimed to investigate infection status in a DKD cohort post-renal biopsy and analyze vaccination and infection rates, as well as symptom severity, across various renal pathologies in DKD patients.

Methods

This epidemiological survey, centered on COVID-19, employed a Chinese DKD and renal puncture follow-up cohort. A customized questionnaire enabled standardized data gathering. It collected data on clinical characteristics, vaccination and infection statuses, and diverse pathological types. The study analyzed the relationship between vaccination and infection statuses across various pathological types, evaluating characteristics and treatment outcomes in patients with infections.

Results

In total, 437 patients with DKD from 26 Chinese provinces were followed up for a median of 44.6 ± 20 months. COVID-19 infection, vaccination, and novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) rates were 73.68%, 59.3%, and 6.63%, respectively. Ten patients with NCP had severe pneumonia or died of COVID-19. Renal pathology revealed that 167 (38.22%) patients had diabetic nephropathy (DN), 171 (39.13%) had non-diabetic renal disease (NDRD), and 99 had DN and NDRD (22.65%). The DN group had the lowest vaccination (54.5%), highest all-cause mortality (3.6%), and highest endpoint rates (34.10%). Compared to patients who were not vaccinated pre-infection (117 cases), vaccinated patients (198 cases) had reduced NCP (6.6% vs. 13.7%), severity (1.0% vs. 3.4%), and endpoint (9.10% vs. 31.60%) rates.

Conclusion

Vaccination can prevent infection and diminish COVID-19 severity in patients with DKD; therefore, increasing vaccination rates is particularly important.

Clinical Trial registration

ClinicalTrails.gov, NCT05888909.

COVID-19-related fear and anxiety in a sample of patients with type 2 diabetes: a cross-sectional study in Iran after several peaks of the pandemic

Purpose

The aim of this study was to assess COVID-19-related anxiety, and fear burden in diabetic patients, as a risk group for severe COVID-19.

Methods

A cross-sectional online survey conducted on 111 type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients referred to a Diabetes clinics of Royan institute, and 155 healthy controls recruited from normal population using a snowball sampling technique. Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19 S) and Coronavirus anxiety scale (CAS) were used.

Results

The total score of coronavirus fear in T2DM patients was 15.79 (6.39) and in healthy controls 15.48 (5.97) (p = 0.696). The total score of coronavirus fear in T2DM patients was 15.79 (6.39) and in healthy controls 15.48 (5.97) (p = 0.696). Correlation matrix between coronavirus anxiety and fear scores in these samples confirmed that in T2DM participants CAS was significantly positively associated with FCV-19 (r = 0.407, p = 0.000). There was also statistically and positively significant correlation between CAS and FCV-19 in healthy subjects (r = 0.495, p = 0.000).

Conclusion

The present study revealed that the level of fear and anxiety from COVID-19 was almost the same in a sample of Iranian T2DM patients and healthy controls. The pandemic with several peaks in the country cannot cause an increased anxiety and fear from COVID-19, especially in patients with diabetes.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40200-023-01353-8.

Experiences of Filipino Americans with Type 2 Diabetes during COVID-19: A Qualitative Study

Little is known about the experiences of Filipino Americans with type 2 diabetes regarding their self-management during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. We conducted a qualitative research study using semistructured interviews. In total, 19 interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed by 4 independent coders. We situated our understanding of these results using three concepts from an indigenous Filipino knowledge system called Sikolohiyang Pilipino: Kapwa (shared identity), Bahala Na (determination), and Pakikibaka (spaces of resistance). The following three main themes emerged: (1) stressors of the pandemic, (2) coping behaviors (with two subthemes: emotional and lifestyle-focused responses), and (3) diabetes self-management outcomes. Participants experienced stresses, anxiety, and loneliness during the pandemic magnified by the complexities of self-management. Although many admitted the pandemic brought challenges, including burnout, they coped by using existing resources-support from family, friends, the use of technology, and various emotional coping mechanisms. Many said that they made few diabetes self-management changes.

Lifestyles Under Lockdown: A Scoping Review of International Studies on Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management Behaviors During COVID-19

Background

The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on diabetes self-management behaviors is unclear.

Objectives

This paper is a scoping review of studies examining health behaviors among people with type 2 diabetes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eligibility Criteria

We searched articles available in English using the Search terms "COVID" and "diabetes", and, separately, each of the following terms: "lifestyle", "health behavior", "self-care", "self-management", "adherence", "compliance", "eating", "diet", "physical activity", "exercise", "sleep", "self-monitoring of blood glucose", or "continuous glucose monitoring".

Sources of Evidence

We searched PubMed, PsychInfo, and Google Scholar databases from December 2019 through August 2021.

Charting Methods

Data were extracted by 4 calibrated reviewers and study elements were charted.

Results

The search identified 1,710 articles. After screening for relevance and eligibility, 24 articles were included in this review. Findings show the strongest evidence for reduced physical activity and stable glucose monitoring and substance use. There was equivocal evidence for deleterious changes in sleep, diet, and medication intake. With one minor exception, there was no evidence for favorable changes in health behaviors. Limitations of the literature include small samples, predominantly cross-sectional study designs, reliance on retrospective self-reports, sampling through social media, and few standardized measures.

Conclusions

Early studies of health behaviors among people with type 2 diabetes during the COVID-19 pandemic suggest a need for novel interventions to support diabetes self-management, especially targeting physical activity. Future studies should go beyond documenting changes in health behaviors and examine predictors of change over time.

Investigation of perceived fear of COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy in nursing students

This study aims to investigate the perceived fear of COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy in nursing students. This study was conducted as a cross-sectional study with the participation of 1167 nursing students. Personal Information Form, Vaccine Hesitancy Scale and Fear of COVID-19 Scale were used for data collection. The reasons for the vaccine hesitancy of the students were listed as follows: 57.6% of them stated that it had side effects, 17.7% stated there was no conclusive evidence that the vaccine was effective, and 12.6% stated it was not reliable. A positive correlation was found between fear of COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy.

The effect of immunosuppressive therapy after liver transplantation on activities of daily living and fear of death during the COVID-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND

In our study, we aimed to investigate the effect of immunosuppressive therapy after liver transplantation on activities of daily living and fear of death during the COVID-19 pandemic.

METHODS

This study was conducted as a cross-sectional study with the participation of 213 liver transplant patients hospitalized in the liver transplant center of a university hospital. The data analysis was performed with IBM SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) Statistics 25.

RESULTS

Katz's Activities of Daily Living (ADL) were semi-independent and the total score was 11.07 ± 1.59, and the Death Attitude Profile-Revised (DAP-R) total score was 152.23 ± 5.34. It was determined that the DAP-R score was around 150 points in the minimum and maximum score ranges of Katz ADL after liver transplantation.

CONCLUSIONS

High fear of death threatens resilience and can make patients feel lonely, helpless, sad, abandoned and stressed. Clinicians should spend more time with their patients.