Research
In addition to our commitment to offering the most up-to-date care available for children with diabetes, our providers are also continually conducting research in the field of diabetes. Our faculty study a wide range of topics, including health outcomes and quality of life for children with diabetes, and the link between childhood obesity and its long-term endocrine consequences such as pubertal maturation.
U-M faculty also explore ways to improve the tools available to families to support them in managing their child’s diabetes. We focus on providing patients information about the latest diabetes technology (such as insulin brands, pumps, continuous glucose monitors) to allow them to decide if it right for them. See below for additional information about some of our current studies.
If you would like to search for eligible research studies not listed below, click here.
Actively Recruiting Studies
Type 1 Diabetes TrialNet Pathway to Prevention Study
Did you know that relatives of people with type 1 diabetes have 15 times greater risk for developing the disease than people with no family history?
We are partnering with the University of Michigan TrialNet team to prevent type 1 diabetes and we encourage you to get involved. TrialNet is an international network of researchers seeking ways to delay or prevent type 1 diabetes. TrialNet offers risk screening to relatives of people with type 1 diabetes to see if they are at risk for developing the disease. The screening is a free blood test that can detect the risk for type 1 diabetes years before symptoms appear. Most of this process can be completed from home!
How can you get involved?
If someone in your family has type 1 diabetes, you can request to have a test kit mailed to you, free of charge, to obtain a screening sample. You can order an in-home test kit or a lab test kit that you take to a lab for the blood draw. Test kits can be mailed to you anywhere in the US and all of the paperwork can be completed electronically. If testing shows that you are at increased risk for type 1 diabetes, you can be monitored by TrialNet and may be eligible to join a research study testing ways to prevent or delay the disease.
Who is eligible to be screened?
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Anyone ages 2 through 45 years old with a sibling, child, or parent with type 1 diabetes (1st degree relatives).
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Anyone ages 2 through 20 years old with a cousin, aunt, uncle, niece, nephew, grandparent, or half-sibling with type 1 diabetes (2nd degree relatives).
For more information, please call (734) 615-4079 or email our Study Coordinator, Aimee Katona, at UMHS-TrialNet@med.umich.edu. We hope to hear from you soon!
Teplizumab (TZIELD) Clinical Study for Newly Diagnosed Type 1 Diabetes
Have you or your child recently been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes?
We are working with Sanofi on a research study of teplizumab (TZIELD) for people recently diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Teplizumab is an immunotherapy that targets the immune system's attack on the body's insulin-producing cells. The study is looking at whether it can help protect insulin-producing cells by affecting the immune cells that attack them when given soon after diagnosis.
How can you get involved?
If you or your child was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes recently, you may be eligible to take part in this clinical trial. Our research team will review the study with you, answer your questions, and help you decide whether it's a good fit. Participation is voluntary and since eligibility is based on time since diagnosis, reaching out soon gives you the nest chance to be considered.
Who is eligible to be screened?
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1 - 25 years of age
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Have been recently diagnosed (within a month) with T1D.
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Be positive for at least one T1D autoantibody
For more information, please contact Aimee Katona, Study Coordinator, at PEDS-ENDO-DM-Research@med.umich.edu. We hope to hear from you soon!
Seeking 12-18 year olds with Type 1 Diabetes for Text Message Study
The QUALITY study team wants to understand how adolescents with type 1 diabetes (T1D) make decisions about their diabetes management through the day. We are seeking 12-18 year olds with T1D who receive care at Michigan Medicine and use a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) to participate in the study.
For more information, click here.
Type 1 Diabetes Youth Advisory Council
The Type 1 Diabetes Youth Advisory Council needs your help! We are seeking a group of adolescents and young adults (14-26 year olds) with type 1 diabetes to work together to improve research studies for other youth with diabetes. If you enroll, we will ask you to attend an online meeting and complete a survey once per month in November 2026, December 2026, and January 2027. . For more information, take a look at the study website at www.t1dyac.org or complete the council application at https://redcap.link/t1dyac.
Who can participate?
14–26-year-olds who:
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Receive care at Michigan Medicine and have type 1 diabetes.
What is involved?
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An online meeting
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Completing monthly surveys in November, December, and January
Seeking 6-15 year olds with T1D using a Dexcom CGM connected to a smartphone or tablet
A research team in the School of Information at the University of Michigan is seeking participants for an evaluation study on our mobile application CODI (Collaborative Diary) for Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) management. We aim to explore how data related to type 1 diabetes are tracked within families and how children engage in the data collection and review. We encourage children with T1D and parents who are interested in learning about their T1D, building their self-care skills, or tracking data to consider participating in the study.
Who is eligible for this study?
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Children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) ages 6-15 years using Dexcom Continuous Glucose Monitor (CGM) connected to a smartphone or a tablet
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At least one parent/legal guardian
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English speaker
What is involved?
If you decide to participate, the child and parent/guardian will take part in three sessions:
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First-interview session (1 hour)
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Four weeks of using our mobile app where the child and parent/guardian work together to track their health-related information (e.g., meals, activities) and a midpoint interview (20 minutes) after two weeks of app usage
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Exit-interview session (1 hour). All the interviews will be remote and video-recorded
We may ask you some questions about:
• Experience with tracking health-related information (e.g., meals, activities that can impact blood sugar)
• Challenges and lessons learned from collaborative-tracking using the app.
Is there any compensation?
Up to $90 gift card will be provided to a pair of child and parent depending on the participation level: $10 for completing first-interview, $15 per week for data collection (4 weeks: $60), $20 for completing the exit-interview.
If you are interested in participating or have questions, please call (734) 272-6352 or email Yoon Jeong Cha at yjcha@umich.edu.
For more information, click here