Diabetes Dateline
Fall 2011
DMICC Meetings Address A1C Test, Clinical Guidelines
The Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordinating Committee (DMICC) met in March 2011 to discuss the use of the A1C test for diabetes and in August 2011 to discuss federal agency diabetes guides and guidelines. The meetings were led by DMICC Chair Judith Fradkin, M.D., director, Division of Diabetes, Endocrinology, and Metabolic Diseases for the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK).
The DMICC, which includes representatives from other federal agencies that support diabetes-related activities, facilitates cooperation, communication, and collaboration among these Government entities.
The A1C test, which has long been used by health care providers to monitor blood glucose control in patients with diabetes, is now one of the tests recommended by the American Diabetes Association for diagnosing diabetes and prediabetes. During the March meeting, speakers presented the history of A1C testing, provided an A1C measurement update, and discussed various issues such as using the A1C test for screening, global harmonization of A1C testing, and the test’s reliability and accuracy.
During the August meeting, speakers discussed the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and its guidelines; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Guide to Community Preventive Services; the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s clinical guidelines; the National Kidney Disease Education Program; and the National Diabetes Education Program.
The NIDDK has published a new fact sheet about the A1C test, The A1C Test and Diabetes, available at www.diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/A1CTest. Other NIDDK publications, including easy-to-read booklets and fact sheets about diabetes, are available at www.diabetes.niddk.nih.gov.
NIH Publication No. 12–4562
December 2011
Page last updated: December 19, 2011
