A randomized controlled trial comparing motivational interviewing in education to structured diabetes education in teens with type 1 diabetes

OBJECTIVE - To compare motivational interviewing- based education (MI) and structured diabetes education (SDE) for improving A1C and psychosocial measures in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS- This study was a 9-month randomized controlled trial comparing MI (n = 21) to SDE (n = 23). Interventions were at baseline (T0) and 3 months (T1), with A1C and psychosocial measures obtained at 6 months (T2) and 9 months (T3). RESULTS- Over the 6 months of follow-up, the SDE group had lower adjusted mean A1C value (least squares mean 10.31, SE 0.32) than the MI group (least squares mean 11.35, SE 0.34) (P = 0.03, d = -0.66). There were no differences on any of the psychosocial measures. CONCLUSIONS- SDE is effective at improving metabolic control in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Diabetes educators were proficient in learning MI.