Quality sleep is essential for physical and mental health, diabetes self-management, and school performance for adolescents with T1D. Social, environmental, and health-related factors are known to impact sleep quality, but few studies have examined sex-related differences in this population. These adolescents face unique challenges not quantifiable with existing surveys, lending importance to firsthand accounts through qualitative methods. We examined differences in barriers to sleep among biologic sexes in adolescents aged 11-17 years with T1D.
Adolescents (n=32, age 14.5±2.0 years, T1D duration 5.8±3.3 years, A1c 7.2±0.8%, 63% biologic female, 75% non-Hispanic White) participated in semi-structured qualitative interviews to explore the impact of sex on sleep disruptors. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and thematically coded by two trained staff for interrater reliability.
Both sexes reported negative impacts on mood, lack of motivation, and poor performance during the day when experiencing poor sleep. Social interaction, activities/sports, diabetes management and devices, school, and electronics were equally prominent barriers to quality sleep between males and females, whereas females were more likely to report insufficient sleep due to anxiety and peer-related stress. Females also reported a greater concern of nocturnal hypoglycemia and reported more actively treating hypoglycemia before bed. Both males and females reported a high level of parental diabetes management during the night, reducing diabetes-specific disruptions for the adolescent. However, they felt this resulted in desensitization to nocturnal alarms.
Adolescents with T1D face many shared barriers to quality and sufficient sleep. Notably, in this cohort, social disruptors to sleep, anxiety, and fear of hypoglycemia appeared to impact females more than males. Further exploration is needed to evaluate observed sex-specific barriers to sleep and tailor interventions to address these barriers.
K. Taylor: None. C. Geno Rasmussen: None. E. Fivekiller: None. S.S. Jaser: None. L.J. Meltzer: Consultant; Egetis Therapeutics, Harmony Biosciences, Zepp Health. R. Wadwa: Research Support; Dexcom, Inc. Other Relationship; Dexcom, Inc. Research Support; Eli Lilly and Company. Advisory Panel; Eli Lilly and Company, Provention Bio, Inc. Research Support; Tandem Diabetes Care, Inc. Other Relationship; Eli Lilly and Company. E.C. Cobry: Advisory Panel; Dexcom, Inc. Other Relationship; Dexcom, Inc.
JDRF (5-ECR-2022-1179-A-N)
