TY - JOUR T1 - Timely testing: who needs to do what differently to improve adherence to guideline-recommended glycaemic monitoring? JF - BMJ Quality & Safety JO - BMJ Qual Saf SP - 694 LP - 696 DO - 10.1136/bmjqs-2021-013082 VL - 30 IS - 9 AU - Sheena McHugh AU - Kate O'Neill AU - Patricia M. Kearney Y1 - 2021/09/01 UR - http://qualitysafety.bmj.com/content/30/9/694.abstract N2 - The haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level has become the standard of care for monitoring type 2 diabetes as it reflects a person’s average blood glucose level over the previous 2–3 months, is correlated with risk of long-term complications and can be measured cheaply and easily. International guidelines recommend testing HbA1c every 6–12 months for those with stable type 2 diabetes, and every 3–6 months in adults with unstable type 2 diabetes until HbA1c is controlled on unchanging therapy.1–3 However, these guidelines are based on expert consensus rather than robust evidence on whether the frequency of HbA1c measurement impacts patient outcomes. To date, most studies have focused on the association between testing frequency and glycaemic control.4–6 In this issue of BMJ Quality & Safety Imai and colleagues go further, demonstrating an association between adherence to guideline-recommended testing frequency and health outcomes.7 Using data from electronic health records (EHRs), they examined adherence to guideline-recommended HbA1c testing frequency over a 5-year period in 6424 people with type 2 diabetes across 250 general practices in Australia. An adherence rate was calculated for each person with type 2 diabetes, dividing the number of tests performed within the recommended intervals by the total number of conducted tests (minus 1). Patients were categorised into low-adherence (<33%), moderate-adherence (34%–66%) and high-adherence groups (>66%). Where there was high adherence to guideline-recommended testing frequency, HbA1c values remained stable or improved over time. In contrast, with low adherence, HbA1c values remained unstable or deteriorated over the 5-year period. The risk of developing chronic kidney disease was lower among those with high adherence compared to those with low adherence (OR 0.42, 95% CI 0.18 to 0.99). There was no evidence of an association between the rate of adherence and the development of ischaemic heart disease. This study provides support for the importance … ER -