Fructosamine

Wishful thinking.

Each time I see a new doctor, we find something else wrong healthwise. In this case, I thought my diabetes was pretty well controlled, but I guess not. My endocrinologist says that the regular hemoglobin A1C test is not accurate for dialysis patients so she ordered a fructosamine test. This basically tell us what my blood glucose levels are over the past 2-3 weeks. She also claims that most diabetes medicine are not effective for dialysis patients so I may have to use insulin if the test result is high.

Well, the test result came back and they’re high. My number was 479 µmol/L, while the reference range is 200-285. This translates to an A1C number between 8-9, which is clearly in the diabetes range. The strange thing is that my daily glucose number are still lowish: it was 89 this morning. How am I supposed to monitor my blood sugar if none of the regular tests are accurate?

Sigh. Maybe she can wait a few months to see if I get my kidney transplant and come off dialysis.

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F*ck. The endocrinologist office just called and it’s imperative that I start taking insulin shots as soon as possible before the transplant. I’m so disappointed. Don’t these doctors talk to each other? They’re all part of the same hospital/medical group. I’ve been on diabetes medication forever and dialysis for 3.5 years. No one, not my primary doctor, nephrologist, or nutritionist ever said that there was a secret test I need to take because everything else is inaccurate. If the fructosamine test is accurate, then I’ve spent the last three years thinking my A1C was ~5 to 6% when in actuality it was ~9%. WTF? And if it was that high, how was I getting hypoglycemia that was bad enough to require a trip to the ER?

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I’m so tired. I think it’s even more discouraging when you think you’ve made good progress by watching what you eat and exercising regularly, but then find out your lab results were all a lie. How can all these doctors and nurses tell me “good job on controlling your diabetes” when this fructosamine test says otherwise, and it’s bad enough that I have to get daily insulin shots?!