Well this week I had a wake up call and frankly I am puzzled. For years, my A1C has been a pretty steady 6.0 to 6.3. i do not even remember the last time I was over 6.3. Well ok, i do, my first A1c was 11.2, but I got it under control.
So anyway, I went to the doc this week and the endo says, hey Dude whats with the A1C? Like, ahh what?? Well anyway I was 6.8. Now this year my A1C’s were 6.0 in January, 6.1 in May, 6.3 in July (it always goes up to about that for the summer reading) and now 6.8. I know its not a crisis, but does anyone have any ideas ? I do not think I am doing anything different. The fall reading, traditionally falls a tenth or so, making this dude an odd one. I would have not been shocked to see a 6.2 or even a 6.4, but wow a 6.8? That sounds a lot like 7 and 7 sounds a lot like 12 and 12 sounds like complications. Yes you can see I tend to look on the bad side of things. LOL
First of all, yes, Rick, you are seeing the dark side…lol 6.8 is NOT 12! Second, I’m just wondering, have you been seeing a rise in your daily numbers? I’m thinking that A1C’s are pretty predictable from what we see daily, though I haven’t tested that theory and maybe a few decimal points are hard to predict. I was 7.2 in May before I really got a handle on dosing and management. I’m going to take the free A1C at Walgreen’s (who knew I’d be so excited about getting poked and draining blood…lol) and anticipate being somewhere in the 6 range.
Anyway, it’s just a number (this from the girl who weighs herself daily!)
Well, this is a really obvious question, I suppose, but do you think you’re having spikes in your day that you aren’t noticing? A 6.8 is an average in the 160s, so unless you’re riding around 160 all day, you’ve got to be going up over 200 at some point in your day. I’d try to figure out where, I think.
Also, it’s not uncommon for changes to show up later. Like, after 3 months of a great exercise plan, I saw no change, but my A1c 3 months after that (when I had stopped exercising again) was much better. Could the summer issues have lingered a little longer?
Not perfect but far from panic worthy. Think about it - what has changed over the past few months, other than the obvious food and exercise choices - changing hours at work? Sleep patterns?
Your higher A1c is most likely from the Prednisone that you have been using for your RA, Rick. You were on a high enough dose to kick your sugars up. Pred. makes it more difficult to control the blood sugars. Your A1c will be Better the next time around, since you discontinued the Prednisone(Right?). Good Luck!!
My Endo, who uses the fast A1C test where you get the result while your there, said that he suspected his tests were wrong even though his staff had calibrated their test and he asked me to be a guinea-pig and check his machine against the full blood draw lab A1c. It turned out the lab results were 5.9 against the fast test result was 6.5.
Thanks to everyone who responded. I think Terrie may have hit the nail on the head. Prednisone was a very difficult drug for me. So difficult in fact I forgot about it. Terrie however remembered and that likely answered the question.
Of course everyone could have the correct answer as well. We are sitting four weeks out and really who knows after these days. Again thank you so much for the comments.
To put your one-time number into perspective, the intensive control group type 1s in DCCT had an average A1C 0f 7.08 and they were the ones who avoided complications!
Just don’t go and buy a bunch of at-home A1C kits and drive yourself crazy with the plethora of results you’ll get!
For story purposes, I tested 4 kits within 48 hours of my result from endo. My endo uses an instant read device rather than a lab test, so I’m a bit skeptical!
Endo: 6.7
ReliOn mail-away kit: 6.7
Appraise mail-away kit: 6.6 (ReliOn and Appraise test sheets get mailed to same lab)
A1C at Home mail-away kit: 7.6
Bayer A1CNow device with results right away (2 tests in one kit): 7.6, 7.4
Yikes!! Contacted the companies and was basically told not to compare results from one lab with results from another. But I thought that’s why labs followed SOPs, etc., to ensure consistent results?!
And, meter averages only go so far. I’ve had the same 2-month averages and widely different A1C results (probably because I didn’t check the same number of times/times of days in the two periods).
So, in short, your result is just a temporary blip. Sorry that all your efforts didn’t get the gold star this time, but we know they usually do
Wow, 6.7 to 7.6?! That’s a pretty big range. I’ve used the ReliOn mail-away kit for my last 3 tests, ever since my insurance stopped paying for … well, basically anything. I know the result is “just a number,” but still – aside from testing my FBG every morning it’s basically the only tool I have to help me evaluate how I’m doing with my treatment. So I do take it kind of seriously.
All this makes me think maybe I ought to just bite the bullet and pay out of pocket for the hospital lab’s $150 A1C test, plus the $90 doctor visit that’s required to get the result, since they won’t tell me directly, even though I’m paying for everything myself! What a racket. But, I guess it’s still cheaper than the complications I’m hoping to avoid.
Geesh, Rainbow. It’s pretty obvious that Zoe is replying to Rick.
I’ve often replied to a poster directly & it’s shown up elsewhere on the page. This seems to happen when they are numerous replies to replies. Let’s see if mine shows up in the proper place or someone will act annoyed for no reason.
After my one-person science experiment with the kits, I’m not convinced the at-home A1C kits provide the kind of data that can be helpful in making self-management decisions. At first I was pleased people had other options to assess level of control, but knew that most health professionals poo-poo the at-home kits.
I still use my meter to guide my decisions. But I can tell you, I’d be putting in a lot more effort to get to the root of the issues if I was certain I had a 7.6 vs. a 6.7! Based on my meter average, I’m sticking with my 6.7, but meter averages can be misleading, depending on how often and when a person tests.
I was very careful to follow all package directions exactly, wash and dry my hands on clean paper towels, etc., keep the test sheet with the dried blood drops under the same temperature conditions before mailing them, etc.
Yes, $240 is a lot cheaper than complications! And FBG tests don’t show how your glucose responds to your meals, so if you have out-of-range spikes there, could equal a higher A1C. I’m hoping you avoid complications, too. Best wishes!
Yes, you did have an increase, but you are still under 7, and you are on top of things now. How have your three day averages been on your meter? That is how I figure DN’s is going up (before cgms). I like the A1cs 6.4 and under also, and do everything to keep her in this range, but sometimes they can creep up. Now that you are aware of it, I’m sure you can get the next one down. There are a lot of people who would be very happy with 6.8. No, I am not one of them.
The 5 second meters are also super inaccurate so we are out on a thin branch. I would not trust any readings from home A1c test kits based on Kelly’s results. I use a 15 second ascentia that still works for the moment with the contour strips but when it dies I don’t know what I will do since the 5 second contour meters are also very inaccurate as all 5 second meters. Maybe some marketing department will discover accuracy and re-introduce the super accurate 60 second meters of 10 years ago or a new FDA with balls will impose accuracy standards that will be better than plus or minus 20%.
