Epidemiological studies have documented that postprandial hyperglycemia is the main risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. It has been established that glycated hemoglobin (HbA1C) provides an integrated measure of plasma glucose (PG) of the last 2-3 months. However, the relative contribution of fasting PG (FPG) and postprandial PG (PPG) to the HbA1C value is controversial. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate FPG and PPG contributions to the HbA1C value in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2). METHODS: 53 subjects with stable DM2 were studied. They were treated with oral anti-diabetic agents (n= 27) and/or insulin (n= 26). Each subject went to 3 visits at 2-month-intervals. On each visit, FPG, PPG (2h after breakfast and lunch), and HbA1C were measured and we provided breakfast and lunch according to their meal habits. PG was measured by glucose-oxidase and HbA1C by ion-exchange chromatography. Statistical analysis was performed by correlation coefficients at a <0.05 P value. RESULTS: Correlations were stronger between HbA1C and post-breakfast PG (r: 0.660.48), mean FPG (r: 0.640.41), glucose area under the curve (r: 0.640.46), and mean PPG (r: 0.590.41). CONCLUSIONS: Measurement of post-breakfast PG showed to be another valuable tool for type 2 diabetic glucose control monitoring.
Postprandial plasma glucose; Post-breakfast plasma glucose; Glycated hemoglobin; Type 2 diabetes mellitus
