Blood Glucose Correlations With Depression, Body Habitus and Caregiving Status in the Elderly Kenyan Luo Grandparents
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Tyree M. S. Winters
Background: In this study, participants in an established study that evaluated grandparents caring for their orphaned grandchildren due to the high HIV/AIDS in the Western Kenyan Luo community were examined to identify a possible correlation between depression and non–insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) within this population.
Hypotheses: (1) Fasting glucose will be correlated with depression scores; (2) fasting glucose will be correlated to body habitus; and (3) fasting glucose means will differ between caregiving (CG) and non-caregiving (non-CG) grandparents.
Method: A convenient sample of 103 elderly Luo grandparents older than 60 years from the Nyando District in the Nyanza Province in Western Kenya was used in this study. The revised John Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25 Depression Scale was used to identify depressed participants. Anthropometric measurements and one blood glucose measurement (either postprandial or fasting) was taken for each participant.
Results: No significant correlation with blood glucose level and the revised HSCL-25 scores was observed. There were significant correlations with blood glucose level and body habitus. There was also a 23.17 difference between the basic fasting glucose level means for the CG group and the non-CG group.
Discussion: The revised HSCL-25 scores may have been a poor measure for depression in this elderly population, leading to an insignificant correlation between blood glucose levels and the revised HSCL-25 scores. A positive correlation between the blood glucose level and the body habitus were expected. The difference between the basic fasting glucose level means for the CG group and non-CG group was also expected.
Limitations: A small sample size, random blood glucose measurements, and the traditional Kenyan diet could have limited the results in the study.
Future Research: In the future, this study will evolve to examine the correlation between NIDDM and self-reported depression by diagnosing individuals with NIDDM and increasing the sample size.
This project was funded by an OU-COM Research Award and The Research and Scholarly Advancement Fellowship Program. The authors thank the field workers in Kenya: Fred Awili; John Ochello; Jared Onyongo; Fred Ombete; Yuanita Hongo, MA.
The American Osteopathic Association
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
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Articles in the same Issue
- LETTERS
- Final Notes From the Chief of Staff
- CORRECTIONS
- Correction
- ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS
- Effects of Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment on Pediatric Patients With Asthma: A Randomized Controlled Trial
- CLINICAL PRACTICE
- Patient-Physician Communication: Why and How
- STUDENT CONTRIBUTIONS
- Student Involvement in Research
- Tendon Gene Therapy Modulates the Local Repair Environment in the Shoulder
- A Theoretical Study of Polarization Effects on a Model Peptide Bond
- Assessment of Patient Flow in Routine Office Visits: Perspectives on Minimizing Patient Visiting Time
- Hysteresis as a Measure of Ankle Dysfunction
- Prion: Gene, Structure, and Species Barrier
- Outpatient Prescribing Practices for Nonapproved Drugs in Children
- Is Equity Being Sacrificed? The Effect of User Fees on the Willingness and ability to pay for Schistosomiasis Control in the Lake Victoria Region of Tanzania
- A Pilot Study Examining the Effects of Neuromuscular Therapy on Patients With Parkinson's Disease
- Metabolic Syndrome and Postoperative Complications in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgical and Percutaneous Interventions
- Blood Glucose Correlations With Depression, Body Habitus and Caregiving Status in the Elderly Kenyan Luo Grandparents
- VOLUME 104 INDEX
- Author Index
- CME QUIZ
- CME Quiz
