Postchallenge Glucose, Glycemic Spikes vs Fasting Glucose, HbA1c
This study suggests that the old standard, oral glucose tolerance test is still more effective at predicting artherosclerosis than the “newer” methods. The OGGT is still one of the best ways to check for insulin resistance, but only if both glucose AND insulin levels are checked at the same time. In the OGGT, the patient drinks a solution w/ a specific amount of glucose in it, and then the blood is checked at specific time intervals. If all you check is glucose, then you have no idea how much insulin is being needed to produce these levels. If it takes alot of insulin to produce a “normal” glucose response, than you have insulin resistance.
Diabetes Care 23(12):1830-1834, 2000 Objective: To observe the relationship of fasting plasma glucose (FPG), postchallenge plasma glucose (PG) (30, 60, 90, and 120 min during an oral glucose tolerance test [OGTT], as well as maximal PG during an OGTT, postchallenge glucose spikes [PGS], and glucose under the OGTT curve), and HbA1c to intima-media thickness (IMT) as a marker of atherosclerosis. Conclusions: PG and PGS are more strongly associated with carotid IMT than FPG and HbA1c level and modify substantially the risk for atherosclerosis, estimated by HbA1c alone, in a cohort at risk for diabetes and in the early diabetes stage.