Why HbA1c test may be failing Indians living with diabetes, Pg14

Key Highlights:

• A study in The Lancet Regional Health: Southeast Asia suggests the HbA1c test may be inaccurate for Indian diabetes patients.
• The study recommends using oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), self-monitoring, or continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) instead.
• India has approximately 10.1 crore people living with diabetes.
• HbA1c measures average blood sugar over 2-3 months by checking glucose-coated hemoglobin.
• Factors like anemia, thalassemia, and malaria can affect hemoglobin levels, impacting HbA1c accuracy in India.

Detailed Insights:

• The HbA1c test measures the percentage of hemoglobin coated with glucose to determine average blood sugar levels over the past 2-3 months.
• An HbA1c level below 5.7% is considered normal, 5.7%-6.4% indicates pre-diabetes, and above 6.5% indicates diabetes.
• Variations in red blood cell levels and lifespan can cause discrepancies in blood sugar measurements across different testing methods.
• Conditions like iron deficiency anemia and G6PD deficiency can alter HbA1c levels, leading to inaccurate results.
• Researchers suggest using OGTT for diagnosis and frequent self-monitoring of blood glucose levels as alternatives to the HbA1c test.
• The high prevalence of anemia, hemoglobinopathies, and malaria in India can compromise the accuracy of the HbA1c test.

Key Concepts Involved:

• HbA1c: A blood test that measures average blood sugar levels over the past 2-3 months.
• Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT): A test to measure how the body processes sugar.
• Hemoglobin: The protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen.