Addressing Standards of Practice for Screening Youth for Onset of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: An Integrative Review of the Literature

Addressing Standards of Practice for Screening Youth for Onset of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: An Integrative Review of the Literature

Nancy Garrett, MS

Faculty Sponsor: Alison DiValerio, MS, RN

Abstract

Background:Accompanying the epidemic of childhood obesity over the past few decades is the rapidly growing incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) and prediabetes among the pediatric population. While expansive knowledge exists on diagnosing type 2 diabetes among adults, less is known regarding effective diagnosis of the disease in youth.

Objectives:To explore what standards of practice exist in screening pediatric patients for type 2 diabetes mellitus.

Methods:An integrative literature review was conducted. Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), PubMed, and Ovid Medline databases were searched. 29 articles were used.

Results:Four themes were identified: controversy of using hemoglobin A1c, the use of additional or alternative screening tools, differences in screening practices by provider, and debate over screening asymptomatic patients.

Conclusions:The findings of this study indicate there is controversy regarding effective methods for screening the pediatric population for type 2 diabetes and a need for continued research and greater standards of practice for this population.

Key words:Type 2 diabetes, youth, child, adolescent, screening