Endocrine Abstracts

Aim: The aim of the study was to compare HbA1c levels in patients with type 1 diabetes before and 3 months after the transition from pediatric to adult endocrinology clinic.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of the data from 88 young adults with type 1 diabetes was done. The consecutive patients were recruited in their last year of pediatric care and then transferred to the adult endocrinologist care. A group of 25 randomly chosen patients underwent structured 5-days educational program through group classes while 63 patients underwent usual care. We compared glycemic control using HbA1c levels before and 3 months after the transition in both groups.

Results: Median age of participants was 25 (17–42) years. Median HbA1c level at the time of transition was 7.5% (5.3–11.4). After 3 months median HbA1c of the whole group was 7.3% (5–10.8), P=0.036. Two subgroups of patients did not differ in age, HbA1c levels before (7.2% (5.3–11.4) vs 8.2% (5.9–10), P=0.184) and 3 months after transition (7.3 (5–10.8) vs 7.3 (5.5–9.4), P=0.587). Nevertheless, patients in the group with structured educational program had significant improvement in glycemic control 3 months after the transition (8.2% (5.9–10) vs 7.3 (5.5–9.4), P=0.036), while the other group with usual care did not improve the HbA1c level significantly.

Conclusion: Structured educational program significantly improves the glycemic control in patients with type 1 diabetes in transition period.