Because hypoglycemia, or high blood sugar, is found in conjunction with a number of other factors, diabetes isn’t always the first cause a diagnosing clinician suspects. However, in a review of 348 patient medical records, researchers from Touro University California in Vallejo and Ohio University in Athens founds that elevated HbA1C was an accurate predictor of undiagnosed diabetes in 77 percent of patients. More than half of the 348 patients with no history of diabetes received a discharge diagnosis that included the disease, according to the research.
“For patients with diabetes, HbA1C levels can reveal opportunities to improve management,” the authors conclude. “Underuse of HbA1C testing in inpatients with hyperglycemia is a missed opportunity to identify, educate and intervene for patients who are not optimally treated. Early detection and intervention may reduce additional costs of care resulting from increased incidence of diabetes-related complications and readmissions. The implementation of a hospital protocol whereby hyperglycemia is recognized and automatically triggers a reflex HbA1C test should become part of normal routines.”
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