Trusted Resources: Evidence & Education
Scientific literature and patient education texts
Association of Sickle Cell Trait With Hemoglobin A1c in African Americans
source: JAMA
year: 2017
authors: Lacy ME, Wellenius GA, Sumner AE, Correa A, Carnethon MR, Liem RI, Wilson JG, Sacks DB, Jacobs DR Jr, Carson AP, Luo X10, Gjelsvik A, Reiner AP, Naik RP, Liu S, Musani SK, Eaton CB, Wu WC
summary/abstract:IMPORTANCE:
Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) reflects past glucose concentrations, but this relationship may differ between those with sickle cell trait (SCT) and those without it.
OBJECTIVE:
To evaluate the association between SCT and HbA1c for given levels of fasting or 2-hour glucose levels among African Americans.
DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS:
Retrospective cohort study using data collected from 7938 participants in 2 community-based cohorts, the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) study and the Jackson Heart Study (JHS). From the CARDIA study, 2637 patients contributed a maximum of 2 visits (2005-2011); from the JHS, 5301 participants contributed a maximum of 3 visits (2000-2013). All visits were scheduled at approximately 5-year intervals. Participants without SCT data, those without any concurrent HbA1c and glucose measurements, and those with hemoglobin variants HbSS, HbCC, or HbAC were excluded. Analysis of the primary outcome was conducted using generalized estimating equations (GEE) to examine the association of SCT with HbA1c levels, controlling for fasting or 2-hour glucose measures.
EXPOSURES:
Presence of SCT.
MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES:
Hemoglobin A1c stratified by the presence or absence of SCT was the primary outcome measure.
RESULTS:
The analytic sample included 4620 participants (mean age, 52.3 [SD, 11.8] years; 2835 women [61.3%]; 367 [7.9%] with SCT) with 9062 concurrent measures of fasting glucose and HbA1c levels. In unadjusted GEE analyses, for a given fasting glucose, HbA1c values were statistically significantly lower in those with (5.72%) vs those without (6.01%) SCT (mean HbA1c difference, -0.29%; 95% CI, -0.35% to -0.23%). Findings were similar in models adjusted for key risk factors and in analyses using 2001 concurrent measures of 2-hour glucose and HbA1c concentration for those with SCT (mean, 5.35%) vs those without SCT (mean, 5.65%) for a mean HbA1c difference of -0.30% (95% CI, -0.39% to -0.21%). The HbA1c difference by SCT was greater at higher fasting (P = .02 for interaction) and 2-hour (P = .03) glucose concentrations. The prevalence of prediabetes and diabetes was statistically significantly lower among participants with SCT when defined using HbA1c values (29.2% vs 48.6% for prediabetes and 3.8% vs 7.3% for diabetes in 572 observations from participants with SCT and 6877 observations from participants without SCT; P CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE:
Among African Americans from 2 large, well-established cohorts, participants with SCT had lower levels of HbA1c at any given concentration of fasting or 2-hour glucose compared with participants without SCT. These findings suggest that HbA1c may systematically underestimate past glycemia in black patients with SCT and may require further evaluation.
DOI: 10.1001/jama.2016.21035
read more full text
Related Content
-
Diving into the genetics of Sickle cell diseaseIn recent years, genetics has become a h...
-
Sickle Cell Disease Hotline | Cayenne Wellness Center and Sickle Cell Disease Education & AwarenessPatients living with Sickle Cell Disease...
-
The Truth About Chronic Illness in CollegeAs I write this post I am sitting in my ...
-
Sickle Cell Disease Management & Complications: Sophie Lanzkron MD of Johns HopkinsStuck on sickle cell disease? We hammer ...
-
Isaac Odame, MB ChB, MRCP, FRCPath, FRCPCH, FRCPCDr. Isaac Odame is a staff physician and...
-
Genetic Treatments for Sickle CellFor decades physicians have known that a...
-
More Cures for More Patients Through Sickle Cell Research: Courtney Fitzhugh, MDhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvdpT1Dn...
To improve your experience on this site, we use cookies. This includes cookies essential for the basic functioning of our website, cookies for analytics purposes, and cookies enabling us to personalize site content. By clicking on 'Accept' or any content on this site, you agree that cookies can be placed. You may adjust your browser's cookie settings to suit your preferences. More Information
The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.