Abstract

The aim of this research is to assess worries about progression of disease using the Fear of Progression questionnaire (FoP-Q) scale on patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM) patients. This is the first study which FoP-Q test used in Turkey.This study was performed in Ordu University between January 2014 and June 2014. One hundred and fifty-one type-2 diabetic patients without psychiatric disease were included in the study. Information including analyses of HbA1c in the last 3 months were scanned from the patient files. Patients completed the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale (RSES), and the Fear of Progression questionnaire. As the validity and reliability studies of the Turkish FoP-Q have not been completed, to test reliability the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was used to assess internal consistency. In the groups with HbA1c≤7 and >7, the total FoP-Q scores were not significantly different but the coping subscale was significantly higher (p=0.0001) in the HbA1c≤7 group.In the HbA1c>7 group the HADS total score (p=0.0023) and anxiety (p=0.0059) and depression (p=0.0097) subscores were significantly higher than the HbA1c≤7 group. A positive relationship was found between the ability to cope with stress and blood glucose regulation. The coping scores from the FoP-Q test were significantly higher in the patient group with HbA1c≤7 compared to the patient group with HbA1c>7. This indicates that supporting DM patients by helping them cope will lower their anxiety related to the disease and possibly help to regulate blood glucose levels.

Key words: diabetes mellitus, fear of progression, HbA1C