That way, you’ll know roughly how much the results differ. Ask your provider for a laboratory measurement of your A1C to compare with the results from the point-of-care machine, especially if the results are surprising. Different machines (even machines from the same brand) may give different A1C levels.However, now special machines have been approved to measure A1C with just a fingerstick in an office, and in less than 10 minutes. Until just a few years ago, A1C levels could only be measured in a laboratory. Translating the A1C assay into estimated average glucose values. Source: Adapted from Nathan DM, Kuenen J, Borg R, et al. A1C level and estimated average blood glucose levels. For example, an A1C level of 7% reflects an estimated average blood glucose level of 154 mg/dl. The following table illustrates how A1C levels relate to average blood glucose, which is given in mmol/L (outside the United States) and mg/dl (within the United States). Levels higher than 9% usually reveal overall poor blood glucose control. Optimal A1C levels to reduce the risk of developing complications in most non-pregnant persons with diabetes are less than 7%, though older persons with multiple medications and limited mobility may have less stringent goals at less than 8%. After diagnosis, most patients should take the A1C test every 3 months, though the test might be spaced to every 6 months for patients with consistently good levels. The A1C test is an important tool for diagnosing and monitoring diabetes. Blood glucose levels fluctuate from hour to hour, day to day but the A1C level reflects the overall average and is the best test to monitor blood glucose control in the past 3 months. If there’s one number all patients with diabetes should know, it’s their hemoglobin A1c ( HbA1c or A1C) level: a measure of their overall blood glucose control for the past 3 months.
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