Factors related to sense of coherence in adult patients with Type 2 diabetes

The Impact of Place of Residence on the Sense of Coherence of Population Aged 60–89: Evidence from Poland

Place of living is one of the most important socio-demographic factors which characterizes the lives of older people. The importance of with whom and under what conditions older adults live to a large extent determines their health and standard of living. The goal of the study was to find the relationship between the place of residence and housing condition of older adults in Poland and their sense of coherence and health problems. The 29-item Antonovsky SOC questionnaire was used. In the research 303 people (76% women and 24% men) aged 60–89 were evaluated: 158 lived in their own houses/flats, while 145 resided in Daily Homes of Social Assistance (DPS). The overall result for the sense of coherence was 129.65 for older adults living in their own homes and 126.48 for these living in DPS. Statistical dependence between the place of residence and sense of manageability and meaningfulness was found. There is no dependence between gender and the overall score, nor the three components of the sense of coherence. Statistical dependence was determined in the criterion of age. A higher level of meaningfulness was observed in people aged 60–74. Taking into account the place of residents, 52% of the respondents living in their own houses/flats experience loneliness and among the people living in Daily Homes of Social Assistance, 46% experience loneliness. The type of place of residence is one of the most important personal factors affecting the sense of coherence, chronic health problems, and sense of loneliness. The last factor, especially, can adversely affect community sustainability and undermine social cohesion.

Effect of Periodontal Disease on Diabetic Retinopathy in Type 2 Diabetic Patients: A Cross-sectional Pilot Study

Both periodontal disease and diabetes are common chronic inflammatory diseases. One of the major problems with type 2 diabetes is that unregulated blood glucose levels damage the vascular endothelium and cause complications. A bidirectional relationship between periodontal disease and diabetic complications has been reported previously. However, whether periodontal disease affects the presence of diabetic complications has not been clarified. Therefore, we examined the effect of the periodontal disease status on diabetic complications in patients with type 2 diabetes. Periodontal doctors examined the periodontal disease status of 104 type 2 diabetic patients who visited a private diabetes medical clinic once a month between 2016 and 2018. The subject's diabetic status was obtained from their medical records. Bayesian network analysis showed that bleeding on probing directly influenced the presence of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients. In addition, bleeding on probing was higher in the diabetic retinopathy group (n = 36) than in the group without diabetic retinopathy (n = 68, p = 0.006, Welch's t-test). Bleeding on probing represents gingival inflammation, which might affect the presence of diabetic retinopathy in type 2 diabetes patients who regularly visit diabetic clinics.