KIU, Western Campus – Emma Gutaka (in the picture), the Deputy Principal Nursing Officer (DPNO) at KIU teaching Hospital has made his latest publication, about depression among adult patients with Diabetes Mellitus attending the diabetic clinic at KIU Teaching Hospital.

The article was published in the IAA Journal of Biological Sciences and it is titled “Prevalence of Depression and Associated Factors among Adult Patients with Diabetes Mellitus Attending Diabetic Clinic at Kampala International University Teaching Hospital.”

It was written in collaboration with Martin Odoki, Isaac Edyedu, Rogers Muland and Emmanuel Ifeanyi Obeagu.

The study concluded that the prevalence of depression among diabetes mellitus patients attending the diabetic clinic at Kampala International University Teaching Hospital was found to be 26.6%.

It also found that in the model at 5% level females were 3 times more likely to develop depression compared to males and patients who lived in urban areas were 5 times more likely to develop depression compared to those who lived in rural areas.

It also found that the prevalence of depressive illness in patients with diabetes mellitus is high and is associated with low education level, period with diabetes, sugar levels well controlled, chronic illness other than diabetes, number of chronic illnesses, among others factors.

It also stresses that diabetes has long been stigmatized as a "disease of the rich," but it now affects all social classes and is a rapidly expanding issue in underprivileged areas.

The study was a cross-sectional descriptive study conducted at KIU Teaching Hospital and the collection of data was quantitative to establish the opinions of the respondents about the study problem under investigation. It was done in patients with diabetes mellitus above 18 years.

This study follows hot on the heels of another one titled, “Factors Associated with Increased Cases of Brucelosis among Patients at Kampala International University Teaching Hospital, Bushenyi District, Uganda,” which was published by Gutaka in the International Journal of Pathogen Research.