Ann M. Carracher, Payal H. Marathe, and Kelly L. Close are of Close Concerns (http://www.closeconcerns.com), a healthcare information company focused exclusively on diabetes and obesity care. Close Concerns publishes Closer Look, a periodical that brings together news and insights in these areas. Each month, the Journal of Diabetes includes this News feature, in which Carracher, Marathe, and Close review the latest developments relevant to researchers and clinicians.

In a sample of adolescents with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes, this study examined if delay discounting, the extent to which individuals prefer immediate over delayed rewards, was associated with severity of non-adherence and poor glycemic control, and if parental monitoring of diabetes management moderated those associations. Sixty-one adolescents (Mage=15.08years, SD=1.43) with poorly controlled type 1 diabetes completed a delayed discounting task and an HbA1c blood test. Adherence was assessed via self-monitoring of blood glucose (SMBG) data from adolescents’ glucometers. Parents completed a parental monitoring questionnaire. Greater delay discounting was associated with higher HbA1c, but not SMBG. Direct parent observation of diabetes tasks, but not indirect parental monitoring, moderated the link between greater delay discounting and higher HbA1c, with higher direct parent observation buffering the link between greater discounting and poorer glycemic control. Delay discounting may be a target for future interventions to improve HbA1c in youth with type 1 diabetes.

Adolescents with type 1 diabetes may be at elevated risk for somatic problems. This study used cross‐sectional, baseline data from an intervention to examine if problems with executive function (EF) were associated with greater somatic problems independent of poor adherence and disease severity in adolescents with type 1 diabetes and above target glycemic control. In addition, it examined whether certain types of EF skills, that is, metacognitive and behavior regulation, accounted for variance in somatic problems. Ninety‐three adolescents completed a glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) blood test and parents completed adherence, somatic problems, and EF questionnaires, which measured metacognitive, behavior regulation, and global EF. Greater somatic problems had significant bivariate associations with greater global (r = 0.42, P < 0.01), metacognitive (r = 0.43, P < 0.01), and behavior regulation EF problems (r = 0.31, P < 0.01), worse adherence (r = −0.39, P < 0.01), and poorer metabolic control (r = 0.26, P < 0.05). However, when adherence, metabolic control, and EF subscales were examined together in the same model, only greater global EF problems (b = 0.15, P < 0.01) and metacognitive EF problems (b = 0.16, P < 0.01) were independently associated with greater somatic problems; behavior regulation EF problems were not independently associated with greater somatic problems when controlling for adherence. Metacognitive EF problems may predict somatic problems in adolescents with above target glycemic control above and beyond physical symptoms related to disease management, underscoring the importance of proper assessment and treatment of these distinct somatic problems.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of death in people with type 2 diabetes (T2D). Recent cardiovascular (CV) outcomes trials have shown CV benefits for several GLP-1 receptor agonists and SGLT2 inhibitors. We aimed to evaluate T2D patients’ awareness, perceptions, and behaviors regarding CVD and cardioprotective T2D drugs. An online survey was completed by 927 T2D patients of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds from an opted-in patient research panel in the U.S. Median respondent age was 64 and median duration of diabetes was 15 years. Half were taking a GLP-1 or SGLT2, a statistically robust sample of patients on these therapies. Questions covered perceptions of CVD disease; awareness of and interest in diabetes drugs that reduce CVD risk; knowledge of their own health metrics; physicians seen and frequency of discussions about CVD; self-assigned ‘grades’ on lifestyle behaviors known to reduce CVD risk. Most patients recognized the link between T2D and CVD: 61% strongly agreed that T2D increases CVD risk. Yet, only 29% think often about their risk of CVD. Awareness of CV benefits from some T2D therapies was also low (34% overall; 42% for those on SGLT2 or GLP-1). Interest in taking an additional cardioprotective diabetes agent aligned with awareness (37% overall; 42% for those on SGLT2 or GLP-1). While almost all knew their HbA1c and blood pressure, over 25% did not know their LDL cholesterol or other lipid levels. In the prior year, 31% of patients had seen a cardiologist and 17% had discussed CVD risk with an endocrinologist. Respondents generally ranked themselves ‘average’ to ‘below average’ on heart-healthy behaviors like exercise, weight, sleep, diet, and stress management. Although a majority of T2D patients are aware of the link between T2D and CVD, most are not actively managing their CV health, and few know that some T2D therapies are cardioprotective. These data suggest a need to better inform T2D patients about their risk for CVD, and steps they can take to reduce that risk. Disclosure K.C. Stoner: Other Relationship; Self; Multiple companies and organizations in the diabetes field (greater than 10). E.N. Fitts: Other Relationship; Self; Various diabetes companies. D. Gopisetty: Other Relationship; Self; Various diabetes companies. A. Carracher: Other Relationship; Self; Other. C.S. Florissi: Other Relationship; Self; dQ&A has several clients (&gt;10) in the diabetes field. M.J. Kurian: Other Relationship; Self; Other Company. J. Kwon: Other Relationship; Self; Various diabetes companies. P. Marathe: Consultant; Self; Close Concerns. P. Rentzepis: Other Relationship; Self; Various Diabetes Companies. J.B. Rost: Other Relationship; Self; dQ&A has several clients (&gt;10) in the diabetes field. K.L. Close: Other Relationship; Self; Various diabetes companies. I.B. Hirsch: Consultant; Self; Abbott, Becton, Dickinson and Company, Big Foot, Roche Diabetes Care. Research Support; Self; Medtronic. M.N. Kosiborod: Consultant; Self; Amgen Inc., AstraZeneca, Bayer AG, Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH, Eisai Co., Ltd., GlaxoSmithKline plc., Glytec, LLC, Intarcia Therapeutics, Inc., Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., Novartis AG, Novo Nordisk A/S, Sanofi. Research Support; Self; AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc. R. Wood: Other Relationship; Self; Multiple companies in the diabetes field (&gt;10 companies). Funding AstraZeneca

Ann M. Carracher, Payal H. Marathe, and Kelly L. Close are of Close Concerns (http://www.closeconcerns.com), a healthcare information company focused exclusively on diabetes and obesity care. Close Concerns publishes Closer Look, a periodical that brings together news and insights in these areas. Each month, the Journal of Diabetes includes this News feature, in which Carracher, Marathe, and Close review the latest developments relevant to researchers and clinicians.