Investigating the indexes of alexithymia and psychopathology, as well as their relation to each other, in patients with type II diabetes.

The study was conducted on a random sample of 60 patients with type II diabetes (Group 1), who were outpatients in two Diabetes Centers of Northern Greece, and in 30 healthy controls (Group 2) We used the translated and validated versions of: 1) the international neuropsychiatric interview questionnaire (M.I.N.I. screen/ DSM-IV), 2) the M.M.S.E., 3) the TAS-20 questionnaire for alexithymia, 4) the SCL-90-R symptoms auto-questionnaire, 5) the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and 6) a protocol of demographic data.

The statistical analysis of the data has yielded the following results: 1) in Group 1, there seems to be a high or very high statistical correlation between the rates of all 4 factors of alexithymia and all 11 sub-scales of SCL-90-R, 2) where alexithymia is concerned, in both Groups 1 and 2, the findings in all 4 factors are as follows: Total score z(78)=-5.132, p<0.001/ Factor 1 z(78)=-5.553, p<0.001/ Factor 2 z(78)=-3.857, p<0.001/ Factor 3 t(78)=-3.825, p<0.001.

The indexes of alexithymia in chronic patients with type II diabetes have a statistically significant higher frequency compared to healthy controls. The factors of alexithymia, as defined in the TAS-20 questionnaire, correlate in various ways with certain psychopathological conditions, as defined in the SCL-90-R questionnaire