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Children diagnosed with type 1 diabetes: A randomised controlled trial comparing hospital versus home-based care
Acta Pediatrica, 07/05/2012
Tiberg I et al. – Hospital–based home–care (HBHC)was found to be an equally safe and effective way of providing care as hospital–based care at the onset of type 1 diabetes for children who are medically stable.
Methods- The trial took place in Sweden with a randomised controlled design and included 60 children, aged 3-15 years.
- After 2-3 days with hospital-based care, children were randomised to either continued hospital-based care or to HBHC for 6 days.
- The primary outcome was the child’s metabolic control after two years.
- Secondary outcomes were set to evaluate the family and child situation as well as the healthcare services.
- Results showed equivalence between groups in terms of metabolic control, insulin dose, parents’ employment and working hours as well as parents’ and significant others’ absence from work related to the child’s diabetes.
- Parents in the HBHC were more satisfied with the received healthcare and showed less subsequent healthcare resource use.
- The level of risk for the family’s psychosocial distress assessed at diagnosis was associated with the subsequent use of resources, but not with metabolic control.