OBJECTIVES: In non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) where auto-treatment plays an important role in disease management, patient satisfaction is particularly important to ensure high compliance and reduce risk of late complications. The objective of this study was to develop and validate a satisfaction questionnaire for adults with type-2 diabetes treated with oral antihyperglycemic agents. METHODS: The DIAPASON questionnaire was developed in French following a literature review and in depth interviews among ten NIDDM adults and eight experts. The questionnaire was tested among five type-2 diabetes patients to verify it’s comprehension, acceptability and relevance. Psychometric properties were assessed in France on a cross-sectional sample of 441 NIDDM participants recruited by clinicians’, a diabetes patient association and a healthcare network. Test-retest reliability was evaluated in a sub-sample of 84 clinically stable type two diabetes participants. RESULTS: Using principal component analysis, four scales were identified: Nutrition (nine items), Physician (three items), Attitudes toward diabetes (five items), and Medication (five items). Item convergent and item discriminant validity were satisfactory. Cronbach’s alphas ranged from 0.67 to 0.87 providing evidence of internal consistency. Intraclass correlation coefficients exceeded 0.70 for all scales except for Medication (0.57). Significant between-group differences were found demonstrating the known groups validity of the questionnaire. Men were more satisfied than women in regards to Attitudes (p=0.0004) and Medication (p=0.0037). Subjects with shorter diabetes duration were less satisfied with Nutrition (p<0.0001) but had more positive Attitudes (p=0.0432) than the others. Participants recruited by the healthcare network were more satisfied with their Physician (p=0.0002) than the other patients. CONCLUSIONS: The DIAPASON is a valid and reliable questionnaire measuring the degree of satisfaction of adults with type-2 diabetes treated with oral antihyperglycemic agents. This questionnaire may be used in different settings to evaluate and to identify aspects of health care in need of improvement.