Maternal trait anxiety and diabetes control in adolescents with type 1 diabetes

Objective: To examine the relationship of maternal trait anxiety with diabetes regulation among adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Methods: Adolescents and their mothers completed surveys assessing trait anxiety, maternal involvement in diabetes care, adolescent management skills, autonomous motivations, mood state, and absenteeism due to diabetes. HbA _1c readings, used to assess metabolic control, were obtained from medical records. Results: Trait-anxious mothers reported taking more responsibility for diabetes management tasks and perceived their adolescents as having poorer management skills. Adolescents with high-anxious mothers reported stronger beliefs that their mothers had high control over their diabetes and their parents were over-protective. For younger adolescents, maternal trait anxiety was associated with higher HbA _1c levels and greater absenteeism. For older adolescents, maternal trait anxiety was associated with lower autonomous motivations for diabetes care and lower positive affect. Conclusions: Interventions for adolescents with diabetes may benefit from addressing these maternal anxiety dynamics in ways that improve diabetes control.