(03-09-12) New Diabetes Diagnostic Threshold of Hemoglobin A1c and the 3-Year Incidence of Retinopathy.

Tsugawa Y, Takahashi O, Meigs JB, Davis RB, Imamura F, Fukui T, Taylor WC, Wee CC.
Source
Division of General Medicine and Primary Care, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts.
Abstract
The new diagnostic threshold of hemoglobin A(1c) was made based on evidence from cross-sectional studies, and no longitudinal study supports its validity. To examine whether hemoglobin A(1c) of 6.5% or higher defines a threshold for elevated risk of incident retinopathy, we analyzed longitudinal data of 19,897 Japanese adults who underwent a health checkup in 2006 and were followed-up 3 years later. We used logistic regression models and restricted cubic spline models to examine the relationship between baseline hemoglobin A(1c) levels and the prevalence and the 3-year incidence of retinopathy. The restricted cubic spline model indicated a possible threshold for the risk of incident retinopathy at hemoglobin A(1c) levels of 6.0-7.0%. Logistic regression analysis found that individuals with hemoglobin A(1c) levels of 6.5-6.9% were at significantly higher risk of developing retinopathy at 3 years compared with those with hemoglobin A(1c) levels of 5.0-5.4% (adjusted odds ratio, 2.35 [95% CI 1.08-5.11]). Those with hemoglobin A(1c) levels between 5.5 and 6.4% exhibited no evidence of elevated risks. We did not observe a threshold in the analysis of prevalent retinopathy. Our longitudinal results support the validity of the new hemoglobin A(1c) threshold of 6.5% or higher for diagnosing diabetes.

Source: Diabetes. 2012 Aug 13. [Epub ahead of print]

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