Conference abstract

Prevalence and risk factors of cognitive dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus receiving care in a reference hospital in Cameroon: a cross-sectional study

Pan African Medical Journal - Conference Proceedings. 2017:2(28).05 Sep 2017.
doi: 10.11604/pamj-cp.2017.2.28.62
Archived on: 05 Sep 2017
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Keywords: Cognitive dysfunction, type 2 diabetes, prevalence, risk factors, treatment adherence
Oral presentation

Untitled Document

Prevalence and risk factors of cognitive dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus receiving care in a reference hospital in Cameroon: a cross-sectional study

Zainab Abba1, Yannick Mboue-Djieka2, Yacouba Mapoure3,4, Cyrille Nkouonlack1, Henry Luma4, Simeon-Pierre Choukem1,2,4,&

1Department of Internal Medicine and Paediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Buea, Buea, Cameroon, 2Health and Human Development (2HD) Research Network, Douala, Cameroon, 3Faculty of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Douala, Douala, Cameroon, 4Department of Internal Medicine, Douala General Hospital, Douala, Cameroon

&Corresponding author
Siméon Pierre Choukem, Department of Internal Medicine and Paediatrics, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Buea, Buea, Health and Human Development (2HD) Research Network, Douala, Department of Internal Medicine, Douala General Hospital, Douala, Cameroon

Abstract

Introduction: diabetes mellitus has been associated with cognitive impairment but this has not been well investigated in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of cognitive dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes and assess its influence on medication adherence.

Methods: we carried out a cross-sectional study over a period of 4 months at the outpatient diabetes and endocrinology clinic of the Douala General Hospital. Consecutive patients with type 2 diabetes attending the clinicunderwent cognitive assessment using the Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE). The patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was used to rule out the confounding effect of depression, and the Morisky score was used to assess medication adherence. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20 for Windows.

Results: of the 223 participants (54.3% females) with a mean age of 56 ± 9.5 years, 33 (14.8%) had cognitive dysfunction (12.6%, 1.8% and 0.4% having mild, moderate and severe cognitive dysfunction respectively). Level of education ≤ 7years (OR = 5.314, 95% CI 2.443-11.561, p < 0.001) was the only factor significantly associated with cognitive dysfunction. No significant association was found between cognitive dysfunction and treatment adherence.

Conclusion: one out of seven of our patients with type 2 diabetes has cognitive dysfunction, which is strongly associated with low level of education and does not affect treatment adherence and glycemic control. Our results suggest that screening for cognitive dysfunction in our patients should focus on patients with a low level of education.