American Diabetes Association Revises Diabetes Guidelines

• Share
• E-mail
• Print

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) revised clinical practice recommendations for diabetes diagnosis promote hemoglobin A1c (A1c) as a faster, easier diagnostic test that could help reduce the number of undiagnosed patients and better identify patients with pre-diabetes, according to a news release. The new recommendations are published in the January supplement of Diabetes Care.

“We believe that use of the A1c, because it doesn’t require fasting, will encourage more people to get tested for type 2 diabetes and help further reduce the number of people who are undiagnosed but living with this chronic and potentially life-threatening disease,” Richard M. Bergenstal, MD, president-elect for medicine and science for the ADA, said in a news release. “Additionally, early detection can make an enormous difference in a person’s quality of life. Unlike many chronic diseases, type 2 diabetes actually can be prevented, as long as lifestyle changes are made while blood glucose levels are still in the pre-diabetes range.”

A1C measures a person’s average blood glucose levels over a period of up to 3 months. The test previously had been used only to determine how well people were maintaining control of their diabetes over time. Under the new recommendations, an A1C of 5.7% to 6.4% would indicate that blood glucose levels were in the prediabetic range. An A1C of 6.5% or higher would indicate that blood glucose levels were in the diabetic range.

The ADA recommends that most people with diabetes maintain an A1C level at or below 7% in order to properly manage their disease. Because the A1C is a simple blood test and does not require fasting, patients may be more willing to get tested, the ADA said, thereby reducing the number of people who are unaware that they have type 2 diabetes.

Click here for more industry news and clinical trial updates.

Comment on this Article:

You must be logged in to leave a comment.

TOP 5 ARTICLES FROM 2010

• Fluidics in Modern Vitrectomy
• A New Treatment for Chronic Central Serous Retinopathy

  Micropulse yellow laser resolves leakage and retinal detachment without scarring or retinal damage.

  by André Maia, MD, PHD

• When to Treat and Not to Treat Patients With Central Serous Retinopathy

  Reduced-fluence PDT is the current accepted treatment for CSR.

  by Francesco Boscia, MD

• Clinical Implications of the BRAVO and CRUISE Trials

  How should physicians apply this new information in their treatment of CRVO and BRVO?

  by David M. Brown, MD, FACS

• An Update on Innovative Retina Technologies