Depression in Iranian Children with Diabetes and Related Factors

Studies have indicated that diabetic children are at risk of developing other diseases such as depression.

This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of depression in diabetic children and identify factors that influence it.

This cross-sectional study was performed on 125 diabetic children in the 7 - 16 age range who had attended the Endocrinology and Metabolism Clinic of the Children’s Medical Center affiliated to Tehran University of Medical Sciences. Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) was used to assess depression.

The study showed 44% of the children were nondepressed, 14.4% depressed and 41.6% borderline. Depression in the diabetic children was not significantly associated with age, gender, injection tools, socioeconomic status, body mass index, number of siblings, disease duration, frequency of injections, number of injected units, and frequency of blood glucose monitoring. Depression was significantly associated with the level of mother’s education (P < 0.001), father’s education (P = 0.01), frequency of hospitalization (P = 0.04) and level of HbA1c (P = 0.03).

According to the results of the study, metabolic control reduces the HbA1c level and the frequency of hospitalization, thereby mitigating the risk of depression in the diabetic children. The educational level of parents, especially mother, is also effective in minimizing this risk in diabetic children.