Diabetes mellitus and depression amid the COVID-19 pandemic: Possible solutions for resource limited settings

Background and aims: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health and well-being is a matter of significant concern. Besides the depression associated with diabetes mellitus (DM) diagnosis and management, the COVID-19 pandemic has also imposed significant distress among people with DM. Methods: This is a narrative review of the interplay between DM management and depression amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Electronic databases, namely; PubMed, CINAHL, EM-BASE and Google Scholar were searched for literature. Search terms were "diabetes", "depression", and "corona virus", "COVID-19"," diabetes self-care "," diabetes self-care in low income countries and diabetes management in Zimbabwe". Results: This papa discusses the interaction between DM and depression, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. We further e\plain the implications on DM management, screening and elaborate on possible solutions to effective prevention and management of depression. Conclusions: We have made recommendations for prevention and management of depression such as collaborative practice, early and routine screening, meticulous self-care and use of non-pharmacological strategics.