Abstract
Aims: The objectives of the present study were to clarify eating problems, depressive and dissociative tendencies, and the experiences of intentional self-harm in Japanese early adolescents with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM). Methods: Subjects consisted of 24 early adolescents (age 10-15 years) who had IDDM. A total of 1109 students in grades 5 to 9 in Yokohama were used as controls. They were assessed with anonymous self-reporting questionnaires including questions about the Eating Attitudes Test26 (EAT26), the Depression Self-Rating Scale for Children (DSRSC), the Adolescent Dissociative Experiences Scale (A-DES), and the experiences of intentional self-harm. The IDDM patients and the control group were compared. Results: The IDDM patients had a higher proportion of the EAT26 which exceeded the cut off score. There were no significant differences between the scores of the DSRSC and the A-DES, and the scores of those who experienced intentional self-harm. Furthermore, the score of the EAT26 was correlated with the score of the DSRSC. Conclusions: The IDDM patients in early adolescence are likely to coexist with eating problems. Depressive tendencies are likely to be correlated with eating problems.
