Hi, I Was Diagnosed With Diabetes 2 Years Ago, My

Posted on Wed, 3 Apr 2019

Question: Hi, I was diagnosed with diabetes 2 years ago, my A1C was a 12 (not sure what blood sugar was), and I don't know how long I have had diabetes, they prescribed metformin but I never took it....I went back to the doctor yesterday and blood sugar is a 311 and A1C is a 12.5 now, she said I should take insulin, 10 units, everyday for 3 weeks (and start taking metformin 500mg 2 times a day) to bring down the blood sugar. I have read that lowering A1C and blood sugar too fast can lead to neuropathy and vision loss and other issues, but she said to take it for 3 weeks and we will see after....is this the right decision?

Answered by Dr. Mirjeta Guni (33 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
About Diabetes treatment;

Detailed Answer:
Hello and thank you for asking!
I have gone through your concern carefully.

The blood sugar you reported are too high for your age and should get lowered as soon as possible.

We usually start insulin when Hba1c is over 9%, as it is the only antidiabetic with rapid results.
You may have symptoms of blurred vision but they will last only a few days until your body gets used again with normal blood sugar.

If you keep these values for more days or months, serious complications may occur.
So, I do agree to start insulin at this moment. Need not to worry about neuropathy in this scenario.

Hope the information will help.
Let me know if I can assist you further.

Best wishes,
Dr.Mirjeta

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Arnab Banerjee