Systematic review and meta‐analysis of psychological interventions in people with diabetes and elevated diabetes‐distress

AIMS: The clinical relevance of diabetes-distress is increasingly recognized, but little is known about the efficacy of interventions specifically targeted to treat elevated diabetes-distress. Therefore, this systematic review sought to determine the efficacy of psychological interventions aimed at treating elevated diabetes-distress in people with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. METHODS: We systematically searched literature from five databases. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) with an English abstract, describing the results of a psychological intervention in adults with diabetes were included. Articles were eligible for inclusion if the primary outcome was diabetes-distress measured by the Problem Areas in Diabetes Scale (PAID-5/PAID-20) or the Diabetes Distress Scale (DDS-17). Only mean group diabetes-distress values above cut-off at baseline or the results of a subgroup above cut-off (PAID-5 ≥ 8, PAID-20 ≥ 40 or DDS-17 ≥ 3) were included. RESULTS: (Cohen's d = 0.57), whereas mindfulness-based interventions did not (Cohen's d = 0.11). CONCLUSIONS: . More rigorous studies are warranted to establish the full potential of these interventions. PROSPERO database registration ID: CRD42017075290.