The relationship between patient perceptions of diabetes and glycemic control: A study of patients living with prediabetes or type 2 diabetes

Objective: This study aims to identify differences in how patients living with prediabetes (preDM) or type 2 diabetes (T2DM) perceive their illness. Methods: Following chart review, a cross-sectional survey was administered to patients diagnosed with preDM or T2DM at two US medical centers. Results: Among 757 respondents, multivariate tests demonstrate that patients living with T2DM have an overall different personal model of disease than patients living with preDM. Patients who have been diagnosed with T2DM report a better understanding of their disease and perceive it to be more chronic in nature than patients living with preDM. Findings revealed a potential but less significant difference in perceived seriousness. Conclusions: In this first application of personal models of disease to prediabetes, results inform implications for clinicians to talk with patients about preDM. Patients living with preDM indicate less understanding of the “disease” and perceive it to be less “chronic,” which may result from unclear clinician communication about preDM. Practice implications: When clinicians talk to patients about prediabetes, they should present the risk factor within the spectrum of glucose tolerance. Although labeled a risk factor, clinicians should emphasize that prediabetes remains a serious concern that will not lessen without intervention.