Diabetes, Vol 25, Issue 3 230-232, Copyright © 1976 by American Diabetes Association
Hemoglobin AIc as an indicator of the degree of glucose intolerance in diabetes
RJ Koenig, CM Peterson, C Kilo, A Cerami and JR Williamson
Hemoglobin AIc concentration, fasting blood sugar, response to an oral
glucose tolerance test, and skeletal muscle capillary basement membrane
thickness were measured in diabetic patients. Hemoglobin AIc concentration
correlates with both response to a glucose tolerance test (r = 0.82, p less
than 0.001) and fasting blood sugar (r = 0.62, p less than 0.001). The
correlation of hemoglobin AIc concentration with glucose tolerance is
independent of fasting blood sugar concentration (partial r = 0.61, p less
than 0.005), whereas that of hemoglobin AIc with fasting blood sugar
probably reflects the relationship between fasting blood sugar levels and
glucose tolerance (partial r = 0.22, p less than 0.05). Hemoglobin AIc
levels do not correlate with basement membrane thickness ( r = 0.15, p less
than 0.05).