Relationship between metabolic control and quality of life in adolescents with type 1 XXXX . Report from two Italian centres for the management of @entity6 in childhood.

@entity1 @entity1723 @entity6
This study is aimed at answering the question whether the demands of the intensified @entity6 management and good metabolic control may influence the Quality of Life (QOL) of adolescents with @entity1723 ( @entity1723 ), and that of their parents. Overall, 153 adolescents were involved (78 males, mean age 15.0 +/- 2.3 median age 14.6 years; average @entity6 duration 6.5 +/- 3.5 years) from the Regional Centres of the Universities of Chieti and Parma. HbA1c determination was centralized and the adolescents were tested according to the adolescent version of the questionnaire developed by Ingersoll and Marrero on the impact of @entity6 , worries about @entity6 , satisfaction with life, and health perception. The burden on the family was assessed following a newly constructed questionnaire. The average HbA1c value was 7.7 +/- 1.4% ( @entity1 8.0 +/- 1.4 and @entity1 7.5 +/- 1.2%). The impact of @entity6 was similar for both @entity1 and @entity1 (average scores: 44.68 vs 45.00) with no effect regarding age or the duration of @entity6 , but the influence of HbA1c values was significant (p < 0.001). Compared with @entity1 , @entity1 had an earlier (at about 12 years of age) and more significant increase in worries (p < 0.01). Lower HbA1c values were associated with fewer worries (p < 0.02). Satisfaction deterioration appeared earlier in @entity1 than in @entity1 and was associated with high levels of HbA1c (p < 0.01). Health perception was poorer in @entity1 than in @entity1 and was influenced by HbA1c values (p < 0.005) in both @entity1 and @entity1 . The burden on the family with @entity6 decreased with the age of the adolescent. In conclusion, in our group of adolescents with @entity1723 , lower HbA1c was also associated with better QOL and with a lower perception of a burden on the family. These findings justify the efforts to assess QOL perception in adolescents in order to facilitate achieving better metabolic control.
