Published 25 September 2008, doi:10.1136/bmj.a1073
Cite this as: BMJ 2008;337:a1073

Practice

10-Minute Consultation

Raised blood glucose concentration

Tim A Holt, clinical lecturer1, Claire J Holt, practice nurse2

1 Health Sciences Research Institute, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, 2 Kenyon Medical Centres, Willenhall, Coventry CV3 3AD

Correspondence to: T Holt tim.holt@warwick.ac.uk

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

A 56 year old woman recently requested a cholesterol measurement and has come to discuss the results, which include a plasma glucose concentration of 8.3 mmol/l.

  • Can diabetes be diagnosed in this patient? Which further tests and what follow-up are needed?
  • Was it a fasting or a random sample? If fasting, can the patient confirm she had fasted for at least eight hours?
  • Does she have symptoms of diabetes? Some patients asking for a screening test may be concerned about symptoms, perhaps non-specific ones, including those of diabetes (thirst, polyuria, unexplained weight loss).
  • Does she have risk factors for diabetes? Discussion might include family history, ethnicity, and history of gestational diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance. Comorbid conditions that raise the risk of diabetes include dyslipidaemia, hypertension, central obesity, and cardiovascular disease.


  • Never pass off a concentration of ≥6.1 mmol/l in a random glucose test as "normal," particularly in patients aged . . . [Full text of this article]



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