Health and Medicine Media

A test that detects blood sugar levels over a period of several weeks not only is the best way to diagnose diabetes but could identify with greater precision than the standard approach who is at risk of contracting it, investigators said.

In a study involving over 11,000 people with no history of diabetes, hemoglobin A1c test more accurately determined who would develop the disease compared with glucose testing, which measures blood sugar levels at a point in the time.

The A1c test was also able to better predict the risk of stroke (CVA), heart disease and death from diabetes, the researchers report in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The team found that people who had A1c levels of 6 percent or more were at greater risk of developing diabetes.

“The A1c has significant advantages over blood glucose test,” said Dr. Elizabeth Selvin from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and leader of the study.

The blood sugar levels can vary from day to day and from hour to hour.

The A1c test is more reliable, repeatable and allows doctors to follow the average glucose levels over time. The quantities are not affected by stress and disease and patients do not have to fast before the test, as with glucose, the researchers said.

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