An mHealth-Based Intervention for Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes and Their Parents: Pilot Feasibility and Efficacy Single-Arm Study

• DOI: 10.2196/23916
• Publication Date: 2021-08-23T20:57:27Z
• Authors: Bree Holtz; Katharine M Mitchell; Amanda J Holmstrom; Shelia R Cotten; Julie K Dunneback; Jose Jimenez-Vega; Deborah A Ellis; Michael A Wood
• Keywords: mHealth; Snowball sampling; Diabetes management

Background Type 1 diabetes (T1D) affects more than 165,000 individuals younger 20 years in the United States of America. The transition from parent management to parent-child team management, with child taking on increased levels self-care, can be stressful and is associated a deterioration self-management behaviors. Therefore, mobile app intervention, MyT1DHero, was designed facilitate diabetes-specific positive parent-adolescent communication improve diabetes-related outcomes. MyT1DHero intervention links an adolescent T1D their through 2 separate interfaces promote regarding management. Objective aim this pilot study determine (1) initial efficacy improving outcomes adolescents, specifically hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels, care adherence, quality life, (2) adolescents’ overall satisfaction intervention. Methods This included 30 adolescent-parent pairs who used 12-week single-arm clinical trial. Participants were recruited local pediatric endocrinology subspecialty clinic via snowball sampling. HbA1c family conflict, measured analyzed using paired sample two-sided t tests linear regression analyses. Results final analysis 25 families. mean age adolescents 12.28 (SD 1.62) years. Half participants (13/25) reported diagnosis less 5 After 12 weeks adherence significantly improved (before study: 3.87 [SD 0.59]; after 4.19 0.65]; t21=–2.52, P=.02, d=0.52) as did life 4.02 0.84]; 4.27 0.73]; t24=2.48, P=.01, d=0.32). 8.94 1.46]; 8.87 1.29]; t24=0.67, P=.51, d=0.04) conflict 2.45 0.55]; 2.61 0.45]; t23=0.55, P=.14, d=0.32) changed hypothesized direction, but change not significant. However, higher use improvement (F1,20=9.74, P<.005; R2=0.33). Overall, satisfied Conclusions In for outcomes, significant benefits demonstrated self-care life. A randomized controlled trial longer needed replicate these findings stability effects. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03436628; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03436628