Maternal fear of hypoglycemia in their children with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus.

A modified version of the Hypoglycemia Fear Survey (HFS) was used to measure fear of hypoglycemia among mothers of 46 pre-adolescent children with IDDM. Glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1) levels were measured, and episodes of severe hypoglycemia over the previous year were recorded. The relationships between the child's age, disease duration, HbA1, history of hypoglycemia, and maternal distress concerning hypoglycemia and HFS-P scores were explored. Maternal HFS-P scores were also compared to those of 78 IDDM adults. There was no relationship between children's age, disease duration, number of severe hypoglycemic episodes and maternal HFS-P scores. However, mothers whose children had passed out with hypoglycemia had higher HFS-P scores. Correlations between mothers' responses concerning their children's history of hypoglycemia and HFS-P scores suggested that their degree of distress associated with events which occurred when their child was asleep, or in a social situation was related to their total HFS-P, and Behavior and Worry subscores. Mothers demonstrated significantly greater fear than did adult patients themselves. The HFS-P may be an appropriate instrument for examining the psychological impact of differing treatment regimens on families of children with IDDM.