Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Adolescence is a time of change and is associated with a deterioration in glycaemic control. Education is an important part of diabetes care and enables patients to understand how to manage their condition. An audit was carried out to assess whether adolescents with type 1 diabetes were being educated about social aspects of diabetes.

Method: Fifteen adolescents between the ages of 13 and 17 were asked to subjectively score their knowledge of nine different social situations and the effect they could have on someone with diabetes. They were also asked to score the quality of information and the importance of each topic.

Standards: Hundred percent of adolescents reporting good knowledge and good quality information (a score of 7 or more out of 10).

Results: Knowledge of food and exercise was best (86.7%). Worst knowledge was surrounding pregnancy and smoking (13.3%). The quality of information provided was highest for food and diet (100%) and lowest for pregnancy (0%).

Conclusion: More needs to be done to increase knowledge of how pregnancy, alcohol, smoking and illegal drugs can affect someone with diabetes. This could be taught through group sessions or during clinic and with support from parents, siblings and close friends.