The methodology of glucose monitoring in type 2 diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease and maintaining a tight glycemic control
is essential to prevent both microvascular and macrovascular complications, as
demonstrated in previous studies. It is essential to monitor the glucose levels in
order to achieve the targets. The blood glucose monitoring can be done by different
methods: glycated haemoglobin A1c, self-monitoring of blood glucose (before and
after meals) with a glucometer and continuous glucose monitoring with a system
that measures interstitial glucose concentrations. Even though glycated haemoglobin
A1c is considered the “gold standard” of diabetes care, it does not provide complete
information about the magnitude of the glycemic disequilibrium. Therefore the self-
monitoring and continuous monitoring of blood glucose are considered an important
adjunct for achieving and maintaining optimal glycemic control. The three methods of
assessing glycemic control: HbA1c, SMBG and CGMS provide distinct but at the same
time complementary information