This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Patient education programs used by younger, recently diagnosed children with type 1 diabetes
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
Children with type 1 diabetes in Germany and Austria who are younger, who are recently diagnosed or who have recently experienced an acute complication, such as hypoglycemia, are more likely to participate in regular diabetes training sessions, according to research in Pediatric Diabetes.
Katja Konrad, MD, of the department of pediatric and adolescent medicine at the University of Cologne, Germany, and colleagues also noted that improved standardized diabetes programs are needed to better meet individualized patient needs and prevent acute complications.
“Our data show that in current clinical practice, most training takes place after diabetes onset and following acute diabetes complications, primarily diabetic ketoacidosis,” the researchers wrote. “Patients with insufficient metabolic control are trained more often than patients with stable metabolic control or patients without acute complications. There is evidence that regularly repeated diabetes training improves self-confidence and diabetes control.”
Konrad and colleagues analyzed data from 21,871 children with type 1 diabetes participating in the Prospective Diabetes Follow-up Registry in Germany/Austria (DPV) in 2013 (54% boys; mean age, 12 years; mean diabetes duration, 3.8 years; migration background, 21.4%). Within the cohort, 5.5% used twice-daily injections; 52.5% used multiple daily injections; 42% used insulin pump therapy; 32.3 underwent diabetes training (94% from Germany).
The researchers found that diabetes duration in children trained in 2013 was shorter vs. those who did not receive training (2.5 years vs. 4.35 years). Those who received training in 2013 also experienced more acute complications of severe hypoglycemia (18.3% vs. 13.9%), hypoglycemic coma (4% vs. 2%) and diabetic ketoacidosis (7.7% vs. 3.1%) vs. children who did not receive training that year. In addition, younger patients (aged 6 years and younger) and their parents trained more frequently and more intensively vs. children aged 12 to 18 years; patients with a migration background were also trained more often (1.57 vs. 1.45) with a higher number of teaching units per patient per year vs. those with no migration background (11.35 vs. 10.93).
Patients diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2013 who received training (n = 1,923) attended a mean of 1.32 training sessions with a mean of 16.31 teaching units vs. 1.53 training sessions and 9.04 teaching units for patients attending sessions but diagnosed before 2013.
The researchers also found diabetes training varied between Austria and Germany. A standard diabetes program was predominant in Germany; in Austria, most centers used their own education program.
“We believe that there is further need to improve the use of standardized diabetes programs in combination with center-created material that fits the individualized needs of the patients and local circumstances in order to meet international recommendations, and to prevent acute complications as severe ketoacidosis and hypoglycemia,” the researchers wrote. “There is further need for age appropriate, standardized and regular diabetes trainings to fit the special needs of young patients with [type 1 diabetes] as well as for the evaluation of current practice.” – by Regina Schaffer
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts