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Is HbA1c test more reliable than a blood sugar test taken at home?

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Patient's Query

Hello doctor,

I am a 35-year-old female. Is HbA1c test at a primary physician's lab reliable? I recently got my annual physical and lab tests done at a new primary physician's office (practicing since five years). The results show I have a glucose of 109 mg/dL and hemoglobin A1c of 6.8 %. My TSH is 5.85 uIU/mL and free T4 is 0.5 mg/dL. The doctor emailed me saying I am now diabetic and also hypothyroid. Three weeks ago, I had tested my blood sugar at home and it was 88 mg/dL. Should I see this doctor or another one?
Answered by Dr. Settipalli Saravan Pramod

Education:

MBBS

Professional Bio:

Dr. Settipalli Saravan Pramod is a Specialist in Internal Medicine. He diagnoses and manages a wide range of adult medical conditions, focusing on preventive care, chronic disease management, and overall patient wellness. He also emphasizes personalized treatment plans to optimize health outcomes.

This doctor is not available for online consultations on the platform anymore.

Consult other doctors in the same speciality

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

  • HbA1c will give us information about your blood sugar in the past three months whereas RBS (random blood sugar) will get us information about the previous day. Therefore, HbA1c is more reliable than of RBS.
  • The HbA1c level needs to be less than 6 to be considered as normal and nondiabetic. If it is more than 7, it confirms that you are diabetic.
  • So, I kindly suggest you recheck HbA1c at a different lab.

For more information consult an internal medicine physician online.

Medically reviewed by iCliniq medical review team
Published At November 3, 2017
Reviewed At May 11, 2025

Education:

MBBS

Professional Bio:

Dr. Settipalli Saravan Pramod is a Specialist in Internal Medicine. He diagnoses and manages a wide range of adult medical conditions, focusing on preventive care, chronic disease management, and overall patient wellness. He also emphasizes personalized treatment plans to optimize health outcomes.

This doctor is not available for online consultations on the platform anymore.

Consult other doctors in the same speciality

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Dr. Settipalli Saravan Pramod

Internal Medicine

Education:

MBBS

Professional Bio:

Dr. Settipalli Saravan Pramod is a Specialist in Internal Medicine. He diagnoses and manages a wide range of adult medical conditions, focusing on preventive care, chronic disease management, and overall patient wellness. He also emphasizes personalized treatment plans to optimize health outcomes.

This doctor is not available for online consultations on the platform anymore.

Consult other doctors in the same speciality
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