New do at home diabetes test shows control progress

Here is a news story about Adrr a new diabetes test based on daily test
numbers. It provides valuable information an a1c or raw daily test
numbers does not by addressing the significance of daily variability in
test numbers. It has predictive value for the next 3 months based on the
current score. Along with a recent thread, it provides proof positive
support for the value of daily testing in all diabetics.

It appears in the nov 'Diabetes Care' journal as:

'Evaluation of a new measure of blood glucose variability in diabetes'

which used as a search on medline will also find the abstract. I
snagged the full article off the net and it is quite impressive. The
formula can be entered into a spreadsheet with daily numbers to compute
the ADRR score.

Here is the news story:

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Oct 30 - The average daily risk range (ADRR),
a measure computed from an individual's self-monitored blood glucose
readings, is useful in predicting both hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia,
according to a report in the November issue of Diabetes Care.

Maintaining well controlled blood glucose levels is important, and there
is a need for measures that accurately predict both high and low blood
glucose levels, the authors note.

Dr. Boris P. Kovatchev, from the University of Virginia Health System in
Charlottesville, and colleagues created the ADRR after analyzing blood
glucose data from 39 type 1 and 31 type 2 diabetics.

In their paper, the team gives the formulas for computing the ADRR from
2-4 weeks of self-monitored blood glucose data, with readings obtained
at least 3 times daily.

The development measure was then tested in a validation cohort of 254
type 1 and 81 type 2 diabetics. In the validation cohort, the ADRR and
standard predictive measures, such as the daily blood glucose range,
were tested for their ability to predict blood glucose variability in
the next 3 months.

The authors found that the ADRR was better than the other measures in
predicting both high and low blood glucose levels. Across the ADRR risk
categories (low, moderate, and high), the likelihood of hypoglycemia and
hyperglycemia rose by 6-fold and 3.5-fold, respectively.

"As a measure of glycemic variability that could be calculated
frequently and tracked over time, the ADRR has promise in facilitating

the provision of clinical relevant information to patients and
clinicians," the authors state. Additional research is needed to
determine if ADRR determination and feedback actually translates into
improved glycemic control, they add.