Quality of Life and Associated Factors among Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus at Buea Regional Hospital, Cameroon: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Background: The rising burden of diabetes in developing countries is a call for concern. By 2035, over 590 million people are expected to have Type 2 diabetes. This condition can significantly impact patients' quality of life (QoL). Studying QoL in Type 2 diabetic patients can inform public health strategies to improve their well-being in Cameroon. Aim: This study assessed the quality of life of people living with type 2 diabetes seeking treatment in the Buea Regional Hospital, Cameroon. Methods: The study was a hospital-based cross-sectional study involving type 2 diabetic patients seeking treatment in the Buea Regional hospital. The study involved 230 participants recruited consecutively from the diabetic unit. Quantitative data on QoL was collected from 230 T2D patients using a standard questionnaire (WHOQoL-BREF) from March 2025 to April 2025. The data was analyzed using SPSS version 27 to determine the quality of life of participants. Linear regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with each domain of the QoL. Results: The quality of life was poor in 80(34.8%), 76(33.0%), 79(34.3%) and 51(22.2%) of participants for the physical, psychological, social and environmental domains respectively. The physical, social and environmental QoL were negatively affected with the duration of the disease. The age of the participants negatively affected the physical and psychological domains.  Physical exercises positively affected the physical domain of the QoL. In the psychological domain, females had a better quality of life than males whereas income levels and household size negatively affected the QoL. Participants with comorbidity had better physical, environmental and social QoL. Conclusion: About one third of T2DM patients in the Buea Regional Hospital had a poor quality of life in all domains. Factors affecting the QoL ranged from the duration of the disease, the age of patients, physical exercise, gender and the presence of comorbidities. These findings provide context-specific evidence to guide interventions aimed at improving the QoL of type 2 diabetic patients in Cameroon.