Social Partner Effects on Type 2 Diabetes Prevention, Management, and Spillover Health Outcomes: Single-Arm Pre-Post Pilot Intervention

Background: South Asian Americans are at high risk of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). South Asian populations are typically close-knit communities, with support networks that could be leveraged in lifestyle interventions. Objective: This study was a single-arm, pre-post pilot study to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of a culturally tailored telehealth intervention for South Asian adults with prediabetes or T2DM and their social partners (trusted household members) who agreed to complete preintervention and postintervention surveys. Methods: Participants attended 5-hour-long health education sessions delivered in English and Bengali. Participant outcomes included pre-post changes in hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), BMI, blood pressure (BP), self-reported minutes of physical activity, and dietary choices at baseline and at the 6-month follow-up. For social partners, outcomes included pre-post survey changes in physical activity and dietary choices. We used Pearson chi-square tests and paired 2-tailed t tests to compare baseline measures with postintervention outcomes. Results: This pilot study included 54 participants and 106 social partners in Atlanta, Georgia, between March 2021 and November 2023. All participants were Bangladeshi and spoke native Bengali. Social partners were most commonly participants' children (39/106, 36.8%) or spouses (34/106, 32.1%). The participant baseline HbA1c level was 7.5% (SD 1.48%), which decreased by -0.83% (95% CI 0.42%-1.30%; P