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A simple test that measures long-term blood sugar may help identify millions of people with undiagnosed type 2 diabetes.
The test, known as hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), provides information on a person's average blood sugar (glucose) over the past 2 to 3 months and does not require fasting. Although the fasting plasma glucose test is still considered the most accurate measure, HbA1c may be more pragmatic because it does not require patients to fast for several hours beforehand.
More than 5 million Americans have undiagnosed diabetes.
If not controlled, the disease can lead to serious medical complications such as heart disease, blindness, kidney damage and amputations resulting from damage to nerves.
Currently, however, there is no clear evidence to support widespread screening at the doctor's office. While the new findings do not show that the HbA1c test is a cost-effective way to do routine screening, they do suggest that more cases of diabetes can be caught.
The test was particularly effective at detecting new cases of diabetes in obese individuals, those with high blood pressure and individuals with a family history of the disease.
An estimated 16 million Americans have been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, but medical experts say the figure is actually higher.
Journal of General Internal Medicine January 2002;17:1-7
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