Abstract
Objective: To discuss the factors involved in the autonomy of type 1 diabetic adolescents and their impact on quality of life. Methods: This is an Integrative Literature Review in which the SciELO and BVS databases were used. The descriptors chosen were “diabetes mellitus”, “quality of life” and “adolescents”, being researched using the boolean operators “AND” and “OR”. Thus, 23 articles between 2010 and 2020 were chosen for analysis. Results: The diabetic adolescent, in addition to going through the common psychosocial changes of the phase, must adapt to the disease and develop autonomy through the metabolic control itself, which can be a challenge. Immaturity, fear of pain, low purchasing power and overprotection of parents can affect quality of life and continuity of treatment, increasing the risk of hospitalizations and serious or irreversible complications. Final considerations: The management of this group of patients must be done in a special way, with the active participation of the health professional being important, since the self-care process must be planned individually in order to circumvent the intervening factors in adherence to treatment.