Type 1 diabetes is associated with alexithymia in nondepressed, non-mentally ill diabetic patients: A case-control study

Chatzi, Leda; Bitsios, Panos; Solidaki, Eleni; Christou, Irini; Kyrlaki, Evridiki; Sfakianaki, Maria; Kogevinas, Manolis; Kefalogiannis, Nikolaos; Pappas, Angelos

doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2009.04.011

Cited by 39 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 Alexithymia was assessed by the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20 (TAS-20) (11,14,15,16,18,19,20,21,31,32,33) based on three subscales: 'difficulty identifying feelings', 'difficulty describing feelings', and 'externally oriented thinking'. TAS-20 consists of 20 statements rated from 1 to 5.…”

Section: Self-report Psychological Instrumentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A deficit in the awareness of affects results in abnormal physiological reactions, a propensity for impulsive behavior, and an impaired capacity for self-care and self-regulation (10). Inadequate metabolic control of diabetes (13), altered immune function (14), altered cortisol responses (15), and changes of C-reactive protein and serum lipid levels (16) are associated with alexithymia, which in turn has been linked with depression, anxiety, stress-related disorders, diabetes, and obesity (11,17,18,19,20). Alexithymia has also been associated with reduced social support, which negatively affects the prognosis of disease and health problems (11,21).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Depression, obesity, and smoking were independently associated with inadequate glycemic control in patients with type 1 diabetes

Melin

Thunander

Svensson³

et al. 2013

European Journal of Endocrinology

129

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Objective: The aim of this study was to explore the associations between inadequate glycemic control of diabetes and psychological, anthropometric, and lifestyle variables in a population-based cohort of type 1 diabetes patients. Design: Cross-sectional study. Methods: In this study, 292 patients with type 1 diabetes, aged 18-59 years, participated. Psychological data were assessed by self-report instruments: Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and Toronto Alexithymia Scale-20. Anthropometrics, blood analyses, data from medical records, and data from the Swedish National Diabetes Registry were collected. Results: Self-reported depression (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 4.8), obesity (AOR 4.3), and smoking (AOR 3.0) were independently associated with inadequate glycemic control of diabetes (HbA1cO8.6%). Gender-stratified analyses showed that self-reported depression (AOR 19.8) and obesity (AOR 7.0) in women and smoking in men (AOR 4.2) were associated with HbA1cO8.6%. Alexithymia, antidepressant medication, and physical inactivity were associated with HbA1cO8.6% only in bivariate analyses. Alexithymia, self-rated anxiety, physical inactivity, and absence of abdominal obesity were associated with self-reported depression. Conclusions: Depression was the only psychological factor independently associated with HbA1cO 8.6%. The association was of comparable importance as obesity and smoking, well-known risk factors for inadequate glycemic control and diabetes complications. The association between depression and HbA1cO8.6% was particularly strong for women. Alexithymia, which is a relatively stable personality trait, was associated with depression. In the future care of patients with diabetes, psychological aspects should be considered alongside anthropometrics and lifestyle factors in order to achieve the goals for HbA1c.

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Section: Self-report Psychological Instrumentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Depression, obesity, and smoking were independently associated with inadequate glycemic control in patients with type 1 diabetes

Melin

Thunander

Svensson³

et al. 2013

European Journal of Endocrinology

129

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Alexithymia has repeatedly been shown to be related to mental disorders, such as depression, anxiety disorders [11] , eating disorders [12] , and substance misuse [13] . It has also been related to somatic illnesses, including essential hypertension [14] , diabetes mellitus [15] , and psoriasis [16] . Alexithymia is not unusual among patients with certain skin disorders [17] .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Alexithymia and Plaque Psoriasis: Preliminary Investigation in a Clinical Sample of 250 Patients

et al. 2016

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Background/Aims: Psoriasis as a dermatological disorder has complex effects on mental health and the psychological status of the patient. Many authors proposed that assessing how psoriasis affects a patient's life is better than a body surface area measurement for delineating psoriasis severity. Alexithymia is a personality dimension characterized by difficulty identifying feelings, difficulty describing feelings, and externally oriented thinking observed in many clinical conditions, especially in psychosomatic disorders. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of alexithymia in patients with plaque psoriasis compared with healthy participants, while taking into consideration demographic and clinical variables. Methods: We enrolled 250 patients with chronic plaque psoriasis, naïve to any systemic treatment, and 215 healthy individuals. The 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20) was used to assess alexithymia. Data analysis was done. Results: The mean TAS score was 53.5 (±15.3) for the patient group and 45.1 (±10.8) for controls (p < 0.0001). Compared to controls, the psoriasis group showed significant alexithymic features (32.4 vs. 9.3%), and no significant differences of alexithymia between patients with severe and mild psoriasis were observed. A significant relationship was determined between alexithymia and female gender and sensitive area involvement, such as the face, hands, and genital area. Conclusion: This study suggests that the assessment of alexithymia should be a part of the comprehensive care of patients with moderate to severe psoriasis. For this purpose, the TAS-20 is a useful and simple tool to be used in daily clinical practice.

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“…Its relations with both mental illnesses and somatic diseases [65] including depression [66], anxiety disorders [67], eating disorders [68], hypertension [69], diabetes [70] and psoriasis [71] have been reported. Alexithymic features are relatively common in the general population, occurring in 10% of adults, slightly more frequently in men [72].…”

Section: Alexithymiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Symptoms of cardiovascular diseases in the course of mental disorders

Ostachowska¹,

Popiołek²,

Walczewska³

et al. 2016

Arch Psych Psych

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Summary:Psychosomatic disorders are extremely common in patients in non-psychiatric departments. It is widely known that in these cases comorbid psychiatric disorders are highly prevalent and that the importance of psychosocial factors is relevant. However, it is still a challenge for both internal medicine and mental health professionals to diagnose and treat them effectively. The need of evidence-based treatment guidelines for clinicians is obvious. As far as it is concerned, DSM-5 has redefined the criteria of somatoform disorders, underlying the importance of incorrect thoughts about symptoms whether organic ethiology. Methods/Design:The aim was to provide an insight into the barriers of diagnosing psychosomatic disorders in cardiology referring to possible psychiatric comorbidity. Over 150 actual abstracts and full text manuscripts were checked. The literature published in English and Polish, mostly in PubMED/MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EM-BASE, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews of past 10 years was studied and compared to the literature of psychoanalytic theory. Disscussion: It is worth to remember, that for high proportion of patients with mental disorders somatic syndrome is the only symptom they report to physicians. Emotion regulation theory, alexithymia theory and desomatization and resomatization theory find it as the effect of unsolved problems with emotions. Moreover, functional neuroimaging studies seem to reveal coherent findings. Based on it, the neurophysilogical model of emotion regulation and the mechanism of cognitive-emotional executive control were described. Accordingly, literature shows that in heart disease patients the incorporation of psychological interventions in healing process significantly reduces mortality and relapse.

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Type 1 diabetes is associated with alexithymia in nondepressed, non-mentally ill diabetic patients: A case-control study

Cited by 39 publications

References 55 publications

Depression, obesity, and smoking were independently associated with inadequate glycemic control in patients with type 1 diabetes

Depression, obesity, and smoking were independently associated with inadequate glycemic control in patients with type 1 diabetes

Alexithymia and Plaque Psoriasis: Preliminary Investigation in a Clinical Sample of 250 Patients

Symptoms of cardiovascular diseases in the course of mental disorders

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