A new paper has been published by a global collaborative group on developing a simplified blood test that increases the overall screening efficiency for type 1 diabetes.
Current screening methods to identify those who are at risk are costly and logistically difficult.
The study showed that a single finger prick blood test could be used in place of the current method of multiple venous blood samples during a two-hour oral glucose tolerance test.
Researchers analysed data from four different studies, from participants aged two to 45 years and in their first and second stage of the disease.
The group of researchers, from Australia, Sweden, Canada, the US and Germany, compared a large number of oral glucose tolerance tests from 3500 people throughout the course of many years.
The found the simple blood test was able to provide the same information and was far less invasive, particularly for young children.
Study lead Professor John Wentworth said: “For several years, we have believed that multiple blood samples increased the accuracy of the oral glucose tolerance tests.
“What we found is that the blood sample taken two hours after the glucose drink predicted a clinical diagnosis with high accuracy.
“Information collected from the study is expected to lead to improved screening efficiency and early diagnosis and treatment for type 1 diabetes.”
Image credit | iStock
