Diabetes-specific self-esteem, self-care and glycaemic control among adolescents with Type 1 diabetes

To explore the relationships between diabetes-specific self-esteem, self-care and glycaemic control among diverse adolescents with Type 1 diabetes.

Adolescents (aged 13-21 years) diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes for at least one year, receiving care at an urban medical centre, completed a self-report battery including demographic information, the Diabetes-Specific Self-Esteem Scale and Self-Care Inventory. Glycaemic control (HbA_1c ) was obtained from medical records at recruitment and one year later. Bivariate correlation and multiple linear regression assessed relationships between the Diabetes-Specific Self-Esteem scale, Self-Care Inventory and HbA_1c at baseline and one year.

Participants included 85 adolescents (15.9 ± 2.1 years; 53% women; 47% Hispanic/Latino). Diabetes-specific self-esteem scores did not differ based on patient characteristics but were significantly correlated with baseline self-care (r = 0.59, P < 0.001) and HbA_1c at baseline (r = -0.51, P < 0.001) and one year later (r = -0.48, P < 0.001). Diabetes-specific self-esteem remained a significant correlate of baseline (β = -0.41, P < 0.001) and follow-up HbA_1c (β = -0.37, P = 0.008) when adjusting for covariates and self-care. Diabetes-specific self-esteem was not significantly associated with change in HbA_1c .

Results suggest that diabetes-specific self-esteem is significantly associated with self-care and glycaemic control among diverse adolescents with Type 1 diabetes. Diabetes-specific self-esteem may be more closely related to HbA_1c than reports of the frequency of self-care behaviours, and could represent a useful tool for clinical and research applications.