Similarity of insulin-dependent diabetics' and non-insulin-dependent diabetics' levels of beta-hCG and unconjugated estriol with controls: No need to adjust as with alpha-fetoprotein

OBJECTIVE: To determine if the same systematic alteration of serum values for alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) in diabetic patients is also seen for beta-hCG and unconjugated estriol (uE3). METHODS: Serum AFP, beta-hCG, and uE3 results were obtained in 18,639 patients for whom complete follow-up information was obtained. Patients were divided euglycemic (n = 18,088), insulin-requiring diabetics (n = 104), and non-insulin-requiring diabetics (n = 437), as well as by rare. RESULTS: The 20% adjustment used for AFP appropriately corrects serum values. No such systematic variation is seen for either beta-hCG or uE3 by glycemic status of race. CONCLUSION: No adjustment for beta-hCG or uE3 is necessary for diabetes for biochemical screening programs.