Excessive testing on type 2 diabetes patients due to over treatment: Study

A new University of Michigan study has revealed that the excessive of testing of type 2 diabetes patients can be linked to over treatment.

The research by American researchers revealed that over treatment can lead to harming the patient, create inefficiency and waste in the healthcare system.

They recommended that patients and doctors should question the value of routine tests.

Professional societies and regulatory bodies recommend that glycated haemoglobin testing is performed once or twice a year on patients with good blood sugar control and no history of hypoglycaemia.

Nevertheless, the authors opined that the association between repeat tests and potential over treatment is concerning, particularly because of the link between intensive treatment and adverse health outcomes. These include hypoglycemia, cardiovascular problems, and death.

Lead researcher Rodney A Hayward of the University of Michigan said improvements in diabetes care are a medical success story, but increasing evidence suggests that overtly aggressive treatment is an under-appreciated problem.

The results have showed that over 60 percent of patients received many more tests than the current recommendations of one to two tests per year. In total, 54.5 percent had three to four tests over one year, and 5.8 percent of patients had five or more tests over one year.

Rodney added that this latest study probably greatly underestimates the size of the over treatment problem because current guidelines have not changed since these were developed 25 years ago when diabetes complications were more common.

The study is published in Journal BMJ.