Why the study?
Does perceived family climate differ between families of adolescents with diabetes and healthy adolescents, and is it associated with metabolic control?
Does perceived family climate differ between families of adolescents with diabetes and healthy adolescents, and is it associated with metabolic control?
Families of adolescents with diabetes exhibit a more structured and less cohesive family climate compared to healthy controls, but this climate does not appear to directly impact metabolic control.
Perceived family climate differences should not yet change practice; leaves open whether structured interactions affect adherence or other outcomes in diabetes.
OBJECTIVE: Compare changes in perceived family climate over time in families with healthy adolescents and families with adolescents with diabetes and analyze the links to metabolic control. METHOD: In a total of four annually conducted surveys, 89 German adolescents with diabetes and 106 healthy adolescents as well as their parents completed the Family Environment Scale (FES). Metabolic control was determined by physicians' reports of adolescents' hemoglobin (HbA1) levels. RESULTS: Compared to families with healthy adolescents, families caring for an adolescent with diabetes portrayed their family interactions as considerably more structured and less cohesive and stimulating. Family climate was not associated with metabolic control and varied little with time, illness duration, and adolescents' gender. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that continued parental monitoring is necessary for good metabolic control. However, a balance must be found between medical adaptation to illness and the adolescent's developmental needs.
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Inge Seiffge‐Krenke (1998) studied this question.
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