Abstract:
Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition associated with numerous complications
that significantly affect patients' quality of life and healthcare costs. Understanding the factors
contributing to the development of complications is crucial for effective management and
prevention strategies.
Objective: This study aimed to assess the number of chronic complications and associated factors
among type-2 diabetes mellitus patients at Wolaita Sodo University Comprehensive Specialized
Hospital, South Ethiopia, 2024.
Methods: A facility-based cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted from June 1 to July
30th, 2024, at Wolaita Sodo University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. A single population
proportion was used to calculate 414 patients as a final sample size and participants were selected
using a convenience sampling technique during the data collection period. Data including
sociodemographic, chronic complications, clinical characteristics, and self-care practices was
collected from patient medical records and interviews. Data was entered into EPI Data Manager
and analysis was performed using R Studio 4.4.0, with descriptive statistics summarizing the
characteristics of the study population. Bivariate and multivariable Poisson regression analyses
were conducted to identify factors associated with the number of chronic complications, and the
results were reported as Incidence Rate Ratios (IRR) with a 95% Confidence Interval, considering
p-values < 0.05 as significant.
Results: Among 404 patients studied, 51.98% (95% CI: 46.98, 56.93) developed at least one
chronic complication. Among those, 21.29%, 9.16%, and 2.48% had developed one, two, three,
and four complications respectively. The most common microvascular complications were
peripheral neuropathy (12.62%) and nephropathy (8.91%), while hypertension (33.42%) and heart
failure (13.61%) were the leading macrovascular complications. The multivariable Poisson
regression analysis identified older age (IRR = 2.30; 95% CI: 1.23, 4.28), longer duration of
diabetes (IRR = 1.87; 95% CI: 1.28, 2.76), raised blood pressure (IRR = 2.02; 95% CI: 1.21, 3.37),
and obesity (IRR=2.63; 95% CI: 1.43, 4.81) as significant factors associated with an increased
incidence of complications.
Conclusion: There is a significant burden of chronic complications among type-2 diabetes mellitus
patients in South Ethiopia. Interventions that focus on risk factors to reduce the incidence of
complications and improve the quality of life for DM patients are needed
