Vet Glucose Curves

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Pasquale's Mom

Pasquale's Mom

Member Since 2013
Hi everyone!

Pasquale is at day 11 now and lookin' good so far.

My vet did mention at the beginning of all of this that he wanted to see him at 14 days to do another glucose curve. I was just wondering what your thoughts on this would be. From what I've seen on here, they seem to run high and numbers can be affected by stress, which I really don't want to subject him to. Do you think I should bring him in just to explain what I've been doing for him, have him looked over & maybe spot check the BG? I am around all day Sunday where I can test his BG 6 times every 2 hours. I placed a call to ask him about this directly, but he's out today.

To those who do glucose curves at home, have you received pushback from your vet, and if so, how did you handle it? confused_cat

Pasquale wanted to say something below too:

Hi Guyz,

I'z feeling betters and thank u for the grate advice and helping my mommy care for me.
If you wuz here, I'd gives you purrs and headbutts.

Purrs and xoxox,

Pasquale
 
Don't bother with doing the curve at the vets. Stress from being at the vets office can raise the BG numbers up to 200 points so the results aren't valid anyway...and can be dangerous since the vet might see a 300 (and think you need to increase insulin) when once home, it's only 100 and an increase would be dangerous

Just do your curve at home and print your spreadsheet out and take it to show your vet...most vets don't think people are dedicated enough to home test (or don't even consider it an option). If your vet is interested in following Pasquale's progress, you can give him the link to your spreadsheet too....He can check anytime he wants to and see how it's going!

Don't take any grief from your vet. Just tell him you are home testing because you want to make sure Pasquale is the best controlled he can be, and also that BG numbers at the vets office are unreliable due to stress.

I told mine exactly what was going on..that I'd found a wonderful group of people who live and breathe feline diabetes all day, every day, so have been getting a lot of my information from them. If something came up that I didn't understand or sounded a bit weird, I'd call him to discuss it, but since I'm home testing, I know exactly how China is doing and if I need to increase or decrease her insulin......He was very impressed at the fact I was home testing, loved the printout of our spreadsheet I gave him and told me to continue listening to the people here because they obviously knew what they were talking about....He was shocked that she was doing so well on such tiny doses since he had told me to start her on 3 units
 
Numbers at the vet may be 100-180 mg/dL higher than at home due to stress; dosing based on those elevated numbers will be too high.

You can do a curve at home by testing from pre-shot to pre-shot, every 2 hours. I'd simply say the home curve will have to do, so I can spend the money on the insulin.
 
Yeah, that's what I was scared of possibly happening.

Okay, good... I'm going to say no to the glucose curve and do it myself on Sunday (which would be day 14). At some date after that, I'll bring him in and the spreadsheet (which I was planning to do anyway to show those readings I got, as he's been no juice. I also planned to show them the food list with the kinds I've been feeding him.) I guess a regular check up with him to talk about all this is the way to go...

Thanks!
 
Chris -I read through your post (did you add to that, or do I need to get some more coffee?)

I do plan to tell them what wonderful advice I've been getting here- and that if anything strange came up that I didn't understand I'd of course still call him.

I agree that most vets just assume people aren't willing to do home testing. That's certainly the jist of what I got anyway. I know they do get a lot of people who just flat out refuse to give shots or anything else, then euthanize them or just let them get worse. The first vet who just wanted me to dose him 4u twice a day discouraged testing, saying I'd just make him mad by pricking his foot pad or clipping a nail too short. (I wasn't about to test him by doing either of those things... Foot pad? Can you say easy infection? Clipping the nail past the quick? OUCH!!! That hurts, and stays sore... and to do repeatedly? Who wouldn't get mad at that??)

The other vets were okay with testing, but didn't really encourage it. One thought I should really use an Alpha Trak and had a concern of scarring his ears (which look just fine and get Neosporin after every prick).

In any case, I hope my vet has the same positive reaction as yours did when I go. I'll keep you posted.
 
yes, I did edit it to add some more information...I've been caught :oops: :lol: :lol:

When my vet saw my spreadsheet and was looking at China's ears, one of the things he made a big deal out of was that her ears looked really great considering how much testing I'd been doing...so there's another "myth" we can bury along with all the others.

And wow! Really??? Clip their toenails short to get a blood sample?? Hey doc..let me clip your toenail short enough to get it to bleed and lets see how many times you let me repeat it!! That's just insane!! cat(2)_steam

Stick to your guns and don't let anyone bully you into anything...you're doing great! :-D
 
Just spoke with my vet, and he was very pleased to hear what I have been up to and more importantly- Pasquale's progress.

We're not going in for a re-check just yet, but he just suggested I keep doing what I'm doing, then cut back on the testing after day 14- to every other day, then to every week. Then we'll do a check up in 30 days where they do a fructosamine test to see where he's really at.
 
Pasquale's looking great!! Don't know why your vet would want to do the fructosamine test though. All that tells you is how his blood glucose has been in the past several weeks...and because you're home testing, you already know that.

Happy to hear your vet was pleased with your testing at home and that Pasquale was doing so well!
 
See, this is why I am glad you guys are here... It helps to bounce this stuff off on to those who know. Maybe I won't do that fructosamine test, unless there's some real value in it, what's the point?

He really is looking great so far, so happy to say. My guys love those foodsicles I made up for them. I feed them in the morning, then leave them each a cube and when I'm home, they're gone!
 
Pasquale's Mom said:
We're not going in for a re-check just yet, but he just suggested I keep doing what I'm doing, then cut back on the testing after day 14- to every other day, then to every week.
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I hope he's meaning the curve testing and not testing in general....
It seems a little bizarre that he tells you to "keep doing what you're doing" yet then he tells you to cut back on the testing? :?: confused_cat

If you're giving insulin, there are a minimum of 3-4 tests required every day: 2 pre-shots so you know it's safe to give a shot and a mid-cycle test or two as you're able so you know how the insulin is working. Testing every other day or every other week is not going to be useful whatsoever.

And if you're testing often enough, the fructosamine won't tell you anything you didn't already know. :lol: ;-)
 
KPassa,

My guy's been 12 days no juice. My vet means that after 14 days of no juice and as long as all is well, that I just won't have to home test him as often. That's where he means to go to every other day, then every week. If he was on insulin, you bet I'd not stop testing him.

Keep doing what I'm doing = keep home testing, keep an eye out for symptoms, keep feeding him a good diet.

I can only guess he suggested the fructosamine as a way of checking my results with theirs? Doesn't a fructosamine test give a better picture than BG tests where #'s can be elevated due to stress?
 
Pasquale's Mom said:
KPassa,

My guy's been 12 days no juice. My vet means that after 14 days of no juice and as long as all is well, that I just won't have to home test him as often. That's where he means to go to every other day, then every week. If he was on insulin, you bet I'd not stop testing him.
Click to expand...

Ah! Okay. I missed that somehow. :oops: :lol:

Pasquale's Mom said:
I can only guess he suggested the fructosamine as a way of checking my results with theirs? Doesn't a fructosamine test give a better picture than BG tests where #'s can be elevated due to stress?
Click to expand...

All a fructosamine does is give an average of the BGs over the last two weeks or so. The number itself can also be misleading so if you do get a fructosamine test done, you'll want a copy of the full report since it will give you a "conversion" of what that number really means. (i.e. on some tests, 190-365 is considered "non-diabetic range.")
 
Doesn't a fructosamine test give a better picture than BG tests where #'s can be elevated due to stress?
Click to expand...

The answer is yes, in that the fructosamine test will show the BG levels over the last several weeks when Pasquale is home and not under stress, so in that case, it can be a useful tool, BUT

if you're home testing, it's not going to tell you anything you don't already know. You can average your test results from the past few weeks yourself and find out what his "average" BG is

The fructosamine test is useful for newly diagnosed diabetics because it does tell you what the average BG has been before you ever took the cat in to find out what was going on. At that first vet visit, if they do one blood test and get a 300, without doing the fructosamine test too, they might say your cat is diabetic, when once home, his BG might be in the low 100's...doing it at that time, it IS a valuable diagnostic tool.

At this point, it's a waste of your money since you are home testing and know what they're running day in, and day out
 
Thanks for explaining that.

The fructosamine test is useful for newly diagnosed diabetics because it does tell you what the average BG has been before you ever took the cat in to find out what was going on. At that first vet visit, if they do one blood test and get a 300, without doing the fructosamine test too, they might say your cat is diabetic, when once home, his BG might be in the low 100's...doing it at that time, it IS a valuable diagnostic tool.
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I wonder if they did a fructosamine test when they first diagnosed him. I know they did a "senior wellness profile," but I'm not sure if that was included. I do have copies of pages from the lab results. I'll have to check when I get home, that would be good to know if they did it and what it was... In any case, I agree that at this point it would be a waste of money. I sure have nothing against saving money after how much I've spent there lately.
 
Hes looking great!

Since you arent giving insulin, doing a "curve" is useless since there is no insulin in his system, there is no curve behaviour of his BG. Also a fructosamine test is just going to tell you what you already know - his BG is great and normal! If you want to spend the money then go ahead but I wouldnt bother.

In two days if he stays in teh 50-130 range then he is in remission/OTJ (touch wood) ...

Tips to stay OTJ

We say a cat is in remission if the cat can maintain BG levels for 14 days between 40-120 with most of that spent under 100. However, please keep in mind that once a diabetic always a diabetic.

1. Never feed dry - not even treats. If you change wet food types, be 100% sure the new food is also low carb and same low carb % as your current food. Some cats are very carb sensitive and an increase from 3-6% to 8-10% can spike the BG’s. Don’t feed if you aren’t sure!
2. Weigh every 2 weeks to 1 month to watch for weight changes. Too much of a weight gain can cause loss of remission.
3. Measure blood once a week, indefinitely. You want to catch a relapse quickly.
4. No steroids or oral meds with sugar - remind your vet whenever giving you any medication. Always double check.
5. Monitor food intake, peeing and drinking. If increasing, a sign of losing remission.
6. Regular vet checks for infection such as dental , ear or UTI. And get them treated quick!

If he does fall out of remission you need to be more aggressive and resolve issues/ back on insulin as soon as possible as the window for a second remission is tight if any.

Wendy
 
Thanks! If you ever want to pay it forward , its always nice to come on here and help advise, or just give support to other newbies!
 
I certainly will! I know how important it is to have moral support, and I can relay my personal experiences in regards to food and home testing. I also left a donation. This site is invaluable and it's wonderful that it helps so many cats and their people.
 
Typically when doing a senior wellness blood panel, a fructosamine test is NOT part of that panel. It is a separate test and depending on where you are located can cost over $100 just for the test alone.

Last week, Maui was sick and because she's been in remission for four years and I don't test her regularly, I allowed the vet to do a fructosamine test, because when I did test her at home her BG's were over 200. My concern was that she would come out of remission and need insulin again or whatever was wrong with her was causing the high BG's.

If I was regularly testing Maui, I wouldn't have felt it necessary to spend the money for a fructosamine test, because my home testing would have been sufficient.

Just something to think about for the future if/when you stop home testing altogether.
 
Thanks Hillary. The fructosamine test was indeed not included in the panel he had.

I'll continue to monitor my guy (just decrease the frequency) and I'm confident this is the way to go. I've learned a ton here about diabetes (a topic I never wanted to know about), but boy am I glad I did! I continue to learn more about the tests, etc. thanks to you.

Thanks as well for saving me the $!!
 
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