Severity of Type 2 Diabetes, Cognitive Function, and Self-Care

Patricia K. Gatlin, K. C. Insel

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

25 Scopus citations

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is associated with poorer performance on certain measures of cognitive function. However, little is known about the associations among working memory (WM), executive function (EF), and self-care in those with severe T2DM. This investigation explored these relationships among 67 middle-aged and older individuals with T2DM (mean age of 62.9 years). Severity of T2DM was measured with a health status composite (HSC) score from the Diabetes Care Profile, the number of prescribed medications, and the number of comorbid conditions. Cognitive assessments included the Working Memory Index and the Executive Interview 25 (EXIT 25). Self-care was measured using the Self-Care Inventory–Revised (SCI-R) and hemoglobin A1c (HgbA1c). WM was significantly correlated with all measures of severity of T2DM (HSC, r =.542, p <. 01; number of comorbidities, r = −.476, p <.01; and number of prescription medications, r = −.344, p <.01). EF was significantly correlated with all measures of severity of T2DM (HSC, r = −.504, p <.01; number of comorbidities, r =.492, p <.01; and number of prescription medications, r =.326, p <.01). The self-care measure HgbA1c was significantly correlated with WM (r = −.352, p <.01) and EF (r =.510, p <.01). The EXIT 25 score fully mediated the relationship between severity of T2DM and self-care as measured by HgbA1c (β =.431, p <.001). These findings provide preliminary evidence for the associations among severity of T2DM, WM, EF, and self-care.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)540-548
Number of pages9
JournalBiological Research For Nursing
Volume17
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 8 2015

Keywords

  • cognitive function
  • executive function
  • self-care
  • type 2 diabetes
  • working memory

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Research and Theory

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