AloeSvea
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 2,059
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Other
Just to mention - in above both picograms and picomoles are being used to measure B12.
picograms is the pg/ml, and picomoles is pmol/l. They are not the same unit at all.
When I was last at my countryside medical centre getting my latest HBA1c, I asked for a B12 test, so I can track my B12 status on metformin. (As stated above, is supposed to be par for the course in diabetic tests in my country, NZ, when patient is on metformin, as B12 deficiency is a known drug-mugging side effect of metformin.) My practice nurse argued with me that my reading was within normal limits. I said, well, it is only two digits off being borderline, so... anyhow, I got the B12 test. It has gone up only 20 digits with all the B12 pill popping, but at least it is up, and not down... (is now 192 pmol/L.)
Practice nurse made me reassure her the measurement I was discussing, as in my medical notes, was in fact pmol/L, not picograms. I am very sorry we folks with diabetes have to be arguing and defending and having these convos in medical practices at all. It's just because I am highly health literate that I knew the difference between these two measurements and so was able to insist. Thank you city lab for putting a reasonable range on a copy of my lab results from yesteryear. Otherwise, I would not know how close to too low for such an important vitamin I was getting.
picograms is the pg/ml, and picomoles is pmol/l. They are not the same unit at all.
When I was last at my countryside medical centre getting my latest HBA1c, I asked for a B12 test, so I can track my B12 status on metformin. (As stated above, is supposed to be par for the course in diabetic tests in my country, NZ, when patient is on metformin, as B12 deficiency is a known drug-mugging side effect of metformin.) My practice nurse argued with me that my reading was within normal limits. I said, well, it is only two digits off being borderline, so... anyhow, I got the B12 test. It has gone up only 20 digits with all the B12 pill popping, but at least it is up, and not down... (is now 192 pmol/L.)
Practice nurse made me reassure her the measurement I was discussing, as in my medical notes, was in fact pmol/L, not picograms. I am very sorry we folks with diabetes have to be arguing and defending and having these convos in medical practices at all. It's just because I am highly health literate that I knew the difference between these two measurements and so was able to insist. Thank you city lab for putting a reasonable range on a copy of my lab results from yesteryear. Otherwise, I would not know how close to too low for such an important vitamin I was getting.