Yes. You all know HbA1c (Glycosylated hemoglobin) is an indicator of glycemic control in patients with known diabetes. But new study published in Journal Watch General Medicine, March edition reveals that HbA1c is not only an indicator of glycemic control, but also a predictor of other clinical outcomes like cardiovascular diseases.

    For this study Allan S. Brett, MD and his colleagues measured HbA1c in 11,000 adults, who had no histories of diabetes or cardiovascular diseases, and correlated HbA1c levels with long-term outcomes. They found that 15-year cumulative incidences of self-reported diabetes ranged from 6% for those with HbA1c <5.0% to 44% for those with HbA1c 6.0% to 6.5%.

    Those with HbA1c levels of 6.0% to 6.5% had two-fold higher risk for both coronary disease and stroke than did those with HbA1c levels of 5.0% to 5.5%, considering a 15-year time period. Please note that their relevance for clinical practice is unclear. The results also indicate that the association between baseline HbA1c level and mortality was J-shaped: Compared with HbA1c of 5.0% to 5.5%, those with either reduced or increased HbA1c levels had greater risk for death from any cause.