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Newly diagnosed but still uncertain

S

Seanm1

Member
Messages
7
Hello, I live in Holland and was diagnosed with diabetes yesterday, however it seems a bit sketchy. I've had odd symptoms for about two months: sensitive to the touch skin, tingling legs, hands and feet and shaky hands. On Tuesday my blood test showed I had a high glucose level 11.5 and my doctor diagnosed me with diabetes. I had a second round of tests and everything was at normal levels including my h1ac. The doctor and the specialist both say this is still diabetes, probably type 2 but only based on that high 11.5. My question is are my symptoms consistent with type 2 diabetes and is this enough for a diagnosis?
Thanks.
 
Hi @Seanm1 and welcome to the forum.
In the UK it is 2 HbA1C tests at least 1 month apart, both with a reading of more then 47mmol which is used to diagnose Type 2 diabetes. The reason for this is that a single reading may be a mistake or may be due to a factor other than food or medication.
For example infection, injury, stress, lack of sleep all increase Blood Glucose.

I'm aware that in some countries it is just a fasting 'finger-prick' test BGL reading that is used, but I thought it would need more than just a single high reading.

Unfortunately perhaps even a majority of Type 2 diabetics have no symptoms, or at least no obvious symptoms unless their Blood Glucose is particularly high.
 
ianf0ster said:
Hi @Seanm1 and welcome to the forum.
In the UK it is 2 HbA1C tests at least 1 month apart, both with a reading of more then 47mmol which is used to diagnose Type 2 diabetes. The reason for this is that a single reading may be a mistake or may be due to a factor other than food or medication.
For example infection, injury, stress, lack of sleep all increase Blood Glucose.

I'm aware that in some countries it is just a fasting 'finger-prick' test BGL reading that is used, but I thought it would need more than just a single high reading.

Unfortunately perhaps even a majority of Type 2 diabetics have no symptoms, or at least no obvious symptoms unless their Blood Glucose is particularly high.
Click to expand...
ianf0ster said:
Hi @Seanm1 and welcome to the forum.
In the UK it is 2 HbA1C tests at least 1 month apart, both with a reading of more then 47mmol which is used to diagnose Type 2 diabetes. The reason for this is that a single reading may be a mistake or may be due to a factor other than food or medication.
For example infection, injury, stress, lack of sleep all increase Blood Glucose.

I'm aware that in some countries it is just a fasting 'finger-prick' test BGL reading that is used, but I thought it would need more than just a single high reading.

Unfortunately perhaps even a majority of Type 2 diabetics have no symptoms, or at least no obvious symptoms unless their Blood Glucose is particularly high.
Click to expand...

Ok thanks. It seems quite odd but my doctor is quite sure. I'm worried because my symptoms, if not diabetes related, could be due to another disease, infection or neurological issue that is now being overlooked.
 
Seanm1 said:
On Tuesday my blood test showed I had a high glucose level 11.5 and my doctor diagnosed me with diabetes.
Click to expand...
According to the guidelines of the NHG (Nederlands Huisartsen Genootschap) a random blood test of over 11 is diagnostic for diabetes. So your GP followed the guidelines.

However, there might be circumstances where a non diabetic can go over this for a short time, especially during illness/infection and after eating.
Seanm1 said:
everything was at normal levels including my h1ac.
Click to expand...
Can you ask what your hba1c was?
If it is between 42 and 48 it's in the prediabetic range, which some doctors choose to call normal because it isn't in the diabetic range yet. But a non fasting blood glucose of 11.5 is well possible with prediabetes.

And waving from Friesland! :)
 
Antje77 said:
According to the guidelines of the NHG (Nederlands Huisartsen Genootschap) a random blood test of over 11 is diagnostic for diabetes. So your GP followed the guidelines.

However, there might be circumstances where a non diabetic can go over this for a short time, especially during illness/infection and after eating.

Can you ask what your hba1c was?
If it is between 42 and 48 it's in the prediabetic range, which some doctors choose to call normal because it isn't in the diabetic range yet. But a non fasting blood glucose of 11.5 is well possible with prediabetes.

And waving from Friesland! :)
Click to expand...
Hello Friesland! Are you ready for the heatwave?
Thanks for your reply. My hb1ac is 30, so I'll see how it goes.
 
Seanm1 said:
Hello Friesland! Are you ready for the heatwave?
Thanks for your reply. My hb1ac is 30, so I'll see how it goes.
Click to expand...
With your very non diabetic hba1c of 30 your single BG of 11.5 must have been a funny blip from your body. Or, much more unlikely, the hba1c is wrong. There are some quite rare conditions where the hba1c does not reflect blood glucose.
You could choose to buy a cheap meter and some strips to test a couple of times at home to rule this out.

And no, not ready for the heatwave at all!
Two fans from Aldi are on tomorrows shopping list (they're on offer from tomorrow, 12 euros, pardon my derailing) and I'll set up a 'peuterzwembad' in my garden to live in I think.
 
Seanm1 said:
Thanks. I'm getting a libre free sensor to monitor my BSL over the coming weeks. Good luck with the weather.
Click to expand...
Perfect solution!

Be mindful that those sensors are very useful for seeing trends, but when it comes to absolute numbers they may be a bit off. So don't panic if it shows some low numbers in red. For one, they may be higher than they show, and secondly, they'll show anything below 3.9 as a hypo because they're aimed at diabetics on insulin.
It's normal for non diabetics to drop into the 3's sometime.

Still, it's a very good way to see if you have anything unusual going on, just don't trust it for the full 100%.
Oh, and ignore the first day if those numbers are different from the other 13 days, first day can be wobbly.

Let us know what it shows you!
 
Excuse the derailment but I’m wondering how many of us non Dutch speakers put ‘peuterzwembad’ into Google translate!
Good idea btw!
 
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