Background: Screening for mental health comorbidities is recommended in adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with diabetes. There is a paucity of data on mental health comorbidities in AYAs with type 2 diabetes (T2D).
Objective: To assess rates of depression, suicidal ideation, and diabetes distress (DD) in AYAs with T2D overall and by sociodemographic and clinical factors.
Methods: AYAs with T2D ages 13-21 years seen in a pediatric diabetes clinic between March 2018 and June 2019 completed the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) for depression screening and the Problem Areas in Diabetes - teen version (PAID-T) survey to assess DD. Chi-square tests were used to assess whether rates of depression and DD were associated with participant characteristics.
Results: The sample consisted of 64 AYAs with T2D (58% female, mean age 15.8 ± 2.0 years, mean HbA1c 8.3% ± 2.6%, mean BMI z-score 2.2 ± 0.6, 59% on insulin). Overall, 31% of participants had high depression and/or DD. Twenty-two percent of participants reported high depressive symptoms and 9% endorsed suicidal ideation on the PHQ-9. There were no differences in rates of depression by sociodemographic factors. Twenty-three percent of participants reported high DD. Rates of DD were higher among those on insulin (p = 0.014) and on public health insurance (p = 0.014).
Conclusions: Almost 1 in 3 AYAs with T2D endorsed depression and/or DD. Our findings support the importance of mental health screening in AYAs with T2D, as well as the need for strategies to address psychological comorbidities in this population.
Keywords: Adolescents; Depression; Type 2 diabetes.
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