Diabetic man in danger, blood sugar abnormally low for unexpected reason

GDXH - Suspecting a problem with the personal capillary blood glucose meter, the doctor requested a check and discovered that all the blood glucose test strips had expired a long time ago.

Recently, doctors at the Endocrinology Clinic in the High-Tech Diagnosis and Treatment Department - People's Hospital 115 said they had monitored and discovered a case of a diabetic patient with abnormally low blood sugar .

The patient is male, born in 1950, with a history of diabetes for about 10 years. For about a week, the patient felt tired and thirsty, so he went to the High-Tech Diagnosis and Treatment Center, People's Hospital 115.

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The results showed that the blood sugar control was not good with HbA1c 10% and blood glucose 15 mmol/L. The endocrinologist prescribed subcutaneous analog insulin (20 units in the morning; 20 units in the afternoon) and asked the patient to test blood sugar with a personal meter for monitoring and early re-examination.

During the first two days after the insulin injection, the patient was less thirsty, ate and drank, and felt well. On the morning of the third day, a family member called to report that the patient felt tired and that the capillary blood sugar test result using a personal meter at home was very low (42 mg/dL). Because the patient was still conscious, the endocrinologist instructed him to treat the hypoglycemic attack by drinking sugary drinks. However, follow-up tests within 1 hour later showed low results with little improvement.

Suspecting that there was a problem with the personal capillary blood glucose meter, the doctor requested a test and discovered that all the blood glucose test strips had expired a long time ago. This could have caused the measurement results to be completely inaccurate. At that time, the family bought a new box of test strips and tested the result at 312 mg/dL. The doctor then advised on how to use the personal test machine to get accurate results.

Nowadays, blood glucose monitoring in diabetic patients plays an important role in treatment. The market for personal blood glucose meters has therefore grown continuously over the years. However, users need to clearly understand the principle of measuring blood glucose from this personal device.

The bottom line is that test strips contain enzymes that react with the amount of glucose in the blood when a drop of blood is added and convert it into an electrical signal that is converted into a blood glucose result that is displayed on the screen. However, the amount of enzymes in the test strip can decrease over time. In addition, the amount of enzymes can also decrease if the test strip is exposed to a humid environment or excessive heat. Therefore, the accuracy of the test strip can change after the expiration date, which can increase or decrease the blood glucose result. This can lead to diabetics and doctors making "inappropriate" treatment decisions.

Source: https://giadinh.suckhoedoisong.vn/nguoi-dan-ong-mac-benh-tieu-duong-gap-nguy-hiem-duong-huyet-thap-bat-thuong-vi-ly-do-khong-ngo-toi-172250320154904917.htm