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GP says HbA1c 0f 46 is too low

Discussion in 'Type 2 Diabetes' started by Oldvatr, Jun 9, 2022 at 10:44 PM.

  1. Oldvatr

    Oldvatr Type 2 · Expert

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    Just had my annual review, and my HbA1c was 46 which is one click up from last year, GP told me it is too low, and that he wants the next one to be 56 or higher. This equates to a daily average of 9 mmol.l, I pushed back, and he cut my Dapagliflozin med that had been prescribed for my heart. This is on top of withdrawing my Metformin completely last year. I asked for more gliclazide since I had secretly been trialling some to get my HbA1c back to 42. But NO. He wants 56 because his recent refresher course says this is what patients over the age of 70 should be advised to go for. Buzzcocks. I could not find any UK directive supporting this change, but did find a US advisory
    https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2019/apr/29/lower-blood-sugar-is-not-always-the-bes/

    Looks like I will need to go keto or carnivore now. That will make my eGFR worse, of course because of the extra creatine. I am also cutting out the furusomide since that med is definitely raising my blood sugar level, and giving me constipation.
     
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  2. Ronancastled

    Ronancastled Type 2 · Well-Known Member

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    Never heard of the 56 A1c > 70 years before.
    I wasn't aware of your kidney issues
    I always remember reading Jenny Ruhl & how the prescribed A1c of 7% would lead to complications.
     
  3. EllieM

    EllieM Type 1 · Moderator
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    Look, I can see the logic (sort of). It definitely applies to my dad who will be 92 next month, and has a lot of falls without adding hypos to the mix. (But 92 is a little different to 70)

    But I don't see the point of applying it to people who haven't been getting hypos and don't have issues with falls. And I can't see why it would affect prescriptions of drugs that don't normally cause hypos, such as metformin.

    And as a T1 on insulin , pre-cgm an hba1c of much less than 7% gave me too many hypos and caused loss of hypo awareness, so I never tried that hard to go much lower, but T1 and T2 are very different conditions.

    Could you change to a different doctor?
     
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  4. Oldvatr

    Oldvatr Type 2 · Expert

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    I wonder who is teaching the teachers this. I suspect it is the old ageist attitude that most elderly people are too frail or get too obsessive etc. Same reasonng behind the No Home Tessting for us T2D. Even more confusing since the US article goes on about poor kidney function leading to hypo's which is another nugget of unknown source.

    OK we were both wrong NICE has amended the guidelines, as copied here
    https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng28/chapter/Recommendations#blood-glucose-management
    I am on Gliclazide, so my target according to NICE should be 53 (not 56 as stated by my GP) Its still buzzcocks since the lowest reading I saw in the last year was 4.6, which is nowhere near hypo.

    I note that the guidelines now state that SGLT-2 should NOT be used with a low carb or keto diet. They say the diet must change before taking an SGLT-2.
     
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