Choose the content to read
- Why diabetes testing?
- What are the risk factors of diabetes?
- Who should have diabetes testing?
- What does the diabetes test result mean?
- What to do if the diabetes test results indicate diabetes?
- Diabetes Testing at MedPark Hospital
- Do assessment to receive your type 2 diabetes risk evaluation
Diabetes Testing
Diabetes testing is a blood sugar test to diagnose diabetes, detect pre-diabetes or asymptomatic diabetes, resulting in behavioral changes and blood sugar control, and strictly treat early-stage diabetes to bring diabetes down into remission. Diabetes testing measures blood sugar levels, assesses risk factors, and detects complications associated with long-term high blood sugar levels, including diabetic retinopathy, coronary artery disease, nephrosis, kidney failure, peripheral artery disease, or diabetic foot. Early detection of diabetes allows for establishing treatment goals, administering blood sugar-lowering medication to lower the risk of diabetes complications, and controlling blood sugar levels at normal levels.
Why diabetes testing?
Prediabetes and type 2 diabetes (the most common type) frequently have no symptoms, particularly in obese or overweight people, those who do not exercise, or those over the age of 35. Early detection of prediabetes can help delay the onset of type 2 diabetes, prevent life-threatening complications, and provide early interventions to control blood sugar levels before they worsen and become uncontrollable.
Early signs and symptoms of diabetes
- High blood sugar symptoms include frequent urination, particularly at night, excessive urination, frequent hunger, frequent eating, frequent thirst, fatigue, easily fatigued, and unexplained weight loss.
- Acute high blood sugar symptoms include severe fatigue, extreme tiredness, nausea, vomiting, decreased consciousness, lethargy, fainting, and loss of consciousness.
- Long-term high blood sugar complications include blurred vision, nephrosis, kidney failure, numbness or tingling in hands and feet, peripheral arterial disease (PAD), dry skin, dry eyes, coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, heart failure, and stroke.
- Diabetes complications include infected or chronic wounds, slow-healing wounds, diabetic retinopathy, diabetic foot ulcers, genital itching, vaginal yeast infection, skin yeast infection, coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, palsy, and paralysis.
What are the risk factors of diabetes?
Type 1 diabetes
- Genetics: A family history or direct relatives have type 1 diabetes.
- Age: Often found in young people, school-aged children, teenagers, or young adults
Prediabetes and type 2 diabetes
- Overweight, obese
- Age 35 years and above
- No exercise, lack of exercise
- Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)
- Having a family member or direct relative with type 2 diabetes
- Having a history of gestational diabetes or having given birth to a child weighing more than 4 kilograms
- Having a history of high blood pressure, insulin resistance, morbid obesity, cardiovascular disease, and polycystic ovaries.
Gestational diabetes
- Obesity
- Having a history of gestational diabetes in a previous pregnancy
- Having a family member or a direct relative with type 1 or type 2 diabetes
- Having a fasting blood sugar level that is higher than normal range (impaired fasting glucose)
- Having a history of polycystic ovary syndrome
Who should have diabetes testing?
- Those with a body mass index (BMI) of more than 23 kg/m2, obesity, a waist circumference of 90 cm or more in men and 80 cm or more in women, or a waist circumference greater than the height divided by 2 in both genders.
- Those with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, abnormal blood lipids (dyslipidemia), cardiovascular disease, or polycystic ovary disease.
- Do not exercise, move less, and live a sedentary or inactive lifestyle.
- Have a family history or direct relatives with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
- Children or adolescents aged 10–18 who are overweight or obese.
- Adults aged 35 and up should have their blood sugar levels tested.
- Those diagnosed with prediabetes (should be tested annually)
- Women diagnosed with gestational diabetes (should be tested every 1-3 years)
- Smokers, e-cigarettes, cigars, tobacco, or have recently quit smoking within 1 year
- Those who eat a lot but are thin, have increased hunger, increased eating, increased thirst, like sweets.
- Those with thick, velvety, and dark-colored skin on the neck, armpits, and groin.
- Those who have symptoms of trembling, restlessness, fatigue, dizziness, headaches, irritability, confusion, rapid heartbeat, heart arrhythmia, blurred vision, vision problems, slurred speech, fainting, seizure, and unconsciousness.
What is included in diabetes testing?
A doctor will conduct diabetes testing by inquiring about your medical history, then performing a physical examination and drawing blood samples to measure your blood sugar or plasma glucose levels. Blood sugar testing for diabetes varies depending on the individual and the doctor's discretion, as follows:
Fasting plasma glucose test (FPG)
Fasting plasma glucose test involves drawing blood from your fingertip after fasting for at least 8 hours to measure your plasma glucose levels.
- Fasting blood sugar level of 70-99 Mg/dL indicates you have normal blood sugar.
- Fasting blood sugar level between 100 and 125 Mg/dL indicates you have abnormal blood sugar levels and prediabetes.
- Fasting blood sugar level of 126 Mg/dL or higher, indicates you are at high risk for diabetes. Your doctor will schedule a repeat test the next day or week. If your fasting blood sugar level is consistently equal to or higher than 126 Mg/dL, you are diagnosed with diabetes.
A1C test/HbA1c test
A1C test or HbA1c test A1C test or HbA1c test involves drawing blood from your fingertip or a vein to measure the accumulated blood sugar level, measuring the glycated hemoglobin level coated with glucose over the past 2-3 months without fasting, and it can be done at any time.
- A1C level of less than 5.7 mg%, indicating your blood sugar level is normal.
- A1C levels range between 5.7 and 6.4 mg%, indicating you have prediabetes and a risk of diabetes.
- A1C levels equal to or higher than 6.5 mg%, you are diagnosed with diabetes
Oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT)
Oral glucose tolerance test involves drawing blood from your fingertip or a vein to measure blood sugar level before and after swallowing glucose, after fasting for at least 8 hours by swallowing 75 grams of glucose to measure blood sugar levels, and after swallowing glucose for 2 hours.
- Blood sugar level after swallowing glucose is less than 140 mg/dL, indicating the blood sugar level is normal.
- Blood sugar level after swallowing glucose ranges between 140 and 199 Mg/dL, indicating prediabetes, or risk of diabetes.
- Blood sugar level after swallowing glucose equal to or higher than 200 mg/dL, indicating you are at high risk for diabetes. Your doctor will schedule a repeat test the next week. If your blood sugar level after swallowing glucose is equal to or higher than 200 Mg/dL, you are diagnosed with diabetes.
What does the diabetes test result mean?
Diabetes testing results will reveal blood sugar levels that indicate the risk of diabetes, prediabetes, or asymptomatic diabetes, including other non-diabetic conditions, as follows:
High blood sugar levels (Hyperglycemia)
Blood sugar levels equal to or higher than 126 Mg/dL indicate:
- A high risk of diabetes
- Diabetes
Low blood sugar levels in diabetes (Hypoglycemia)
Blood sugar levels lower than 70 Mg/dL in diabetes may be caused by the following factors:
- Side effects from taking certain diabetes medications
- Not eating enough, particularly after taking diabetes medications.
- Excessive exercise
Low blood sugar levels in non-diabetes
Blood sugar levels lower than 70 Mg/dL in non-diabetes can be a sign of certain diseases, such as:
- Liver disease
- Kidney disease, adrenal gland disorders, pituitary gland diseases, hypothyroidism
- Alcohol use disorder (AUD)
- Hyperinsulinemia
What to do if the diabetes test results indicate diabetes?
When diagnosed with diabetes, the doctor will plan the treatment and provide the following advice:
- The doctor will prescribe blood sugar-lowering medication and gradually adjust the dosage.
- Change your eating habits, eat healthier foods, and get regular exercise.
- For those with type 2 diabetes, the doctor will schedule regular blood sugar checks.
- The doctor will advise you on how to keep track of your health to prevent complications.
- The doctor will provide you with more information about diabetes to help you manage and control diabetes.
How long does it take for the diabetes testing?
Fasting blood sugar tests, A1C tests, and oral glucose tolerance tests are convenient and quick, and the test results are typically available within a few hours. The doctor will report the test results, plan the treatment, and provide appropriate advice, tailored to each individual.
Can diabetes be reversed?
Diabetes is incurable. However, early detection of pre-diabetes or early-stage diabetes will assist doctors in planning treatment to effectively reduce and control blood sugar levels, along with behavioral adjustments, regular exercise, and a healthy eating lifestyle to quickly put diabetes into remission until it can be controlled and managed with diet and exercise alone without the need for blood sugar-lowering medications.
Diabetes Testing at MedPark Hospital
Endocrinology Clinic, MedPark Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand, led by a team of diabetes and endocrine specialists, together with bariatricians, who have experience in treating all types of diabetes, endocrine diseases, adrenal gland disorders, thyroid diseases, or complex pituitary gland diseases, using state-of-the-art medical technology and equipment, continuous glucose monitoring, continuous insulin pumps, telemonitoring for tracking blood glucose levels, or alarm systems when blood sugar levels are markedly low or high to ensure timely diagnosis and treatment, collaborating with a team of rehabilitation medicine physicians and nutritionists, who provide a holistic approach to help patients achieve their diabetes treatment goals, reduce and control blood sugar levels, and lower the risk of complications, enabling patients to control and manage their diabetes effectively.
