Needle-Related Pain, Affective Reactions, Fear, and Emotional Coping in Children and Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes: A Cross-Sectional Study

The self-care of type 1 diabetes (T1D) includes undergoing procedures with needles several times daily, which may cause pain and fear.The aim was to identify the degree of perceived pain, affective reactions, fear, and emotional coping among children and adolescents with T1D.A cross-sectional survey was performed.Children and adolescents 7-18 years of age (n = 197) and their parents (n = 123) completed the Coloured Analogue Scale (CAS), the Facial Affective Scale (FAS), the Diabetes Fear of Injection Questionnaire (D-FISQ), and the Faces Emotional Coping Scale (FECS) in relation to needle procedures.The higher the values of the CAS, FAS and D-FISQ scores, the lower values for coping were reported by children and adolescents regarding treatment with insulin pen or pump, blood glucose test, and venipuncture (p < .001). Patients reported strong negative affect regarding insulin injections (35%) and blood glucose tests (32%), as well as negative affect (48%, 69%) and substantial pain (27%, 50%) for inserting a pump needle and venipuncture, respectively. Parents reported significantly higher values than children on all scales and procedures except D-FISQ (blood glucose tests) and FECS (venipuncture).Children and adolescents who perceive greater pain during needle-related procedures have poorer coping ability. Pediatric diabetes teams need to identify those in need of extra support to develop pain coping strategies.