Could talk therapy help teens with diabetes? a new pilot study explores DBT for mind and body
NCT ID NCT05107154
First seen Jun 30, 2026 · Last updated Jul 01, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This pilot study tests whether dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT) — a type of talk therapy that teaches skills like mindfulness and emotion regulation — can help Indigenous youth with type 2 diabetes improve their quality of life and diabetes control. The study enrolls 20 youth aged 14–22 and includes traditional medicine elements co-developed with community members. The goal is to see if the approach is feasible and acceptable before planning a larger trial.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- dialectical behavioural therapy (DBT) skills training
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this approach could provide a culturally tailored mental health tool to help youth with type 2 diabetes better manage their condition and improve quality of life.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small pilot study (20 participants) focused on feasibility, not effectiveness. The therapy may not produce measurable health improvements, and results may not apply to other groups.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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20 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Nov 2022
- Finished
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Jun 2026
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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14 to 22 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Thirty (30) youths (ages 14-22 years old) living with youth onset T2D will be recruited to participate in Pilot 1, fifteen (15) youths, and one caregiver, will be randomized to receive DBT and fifteen (15) adolescents will be randomized to a control group. * An additional thirty youths (14-22 years old) will be recruited to participate in Pilot 2. Exclusion Criteria: * Diabetes not diagnosed as type 2 diabetes including: type 1 diabetes, genetic diabetes, cystic fibrosis diabetes, diabetes secondary to medication use. * Ever cancer * Other chronic illness associated with systemic inflammation (ex. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn's disease) * Active psychotic disorder * Past year suicide attempt or an active plan * Self-reported substance/alcohol use disorder in past (1 year) * Patient and/or caregiver unable or unwilling to provide voluntary informed assent/consent * Currently pregnant (eligible at 3 months post-partum) * Exclusion criteria would include significant self-harm behaviour and substance abuse, which would impair affective participation in a DBT group setting based on clinical judgement.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Clinic Y, Health Sciences Centre
Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3A 1R9, Canada
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Diabetes Education Resource Centre for Adolescents Clinic, Health Sciences Centre
Winnipeg, Manitoba, R3A1R9, Canada
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