Utility of Glycated Albumin over Glycated Hemoglobin as a Marker to Monitor Glycaemic Status in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic syndrome characterized by hyperglycemia due to alteration in carbohydrate homeostatic mechanisms due to absolute or relative insulin deficiency. Monitoring of glycemic status plays an important role in diabetes management. The study aimed to compare the sensitivity and specificity of glycated hemoglobin and glycated albumin(GA) as markers of glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients as well as to find the correlation between fasting plasma glucose and glycated albumin as well as glycated hemoglobin in DM patients. Methodology: Forty diabetics and age and gender-matched forty no-diabetic controls were recruited. Fasting plasma glucose, Glycated hemoglobin, and glycated albumin were assayed in cases and controls. Statistical analysis was carried out using appropriate tests with SPSS 23. Results: Glycated albumin was also significantly high (p=0.0186) in diabetics as compared to non-diabetics. A positive correlation was observed between FBS and HbA1c (Pearson's correlation coefficient, r=0.452, P<0.01) as well as FBS and glycated albumin (r=0.402 P<0.01).A strong positive correlation between glycated albumin and hemoglobin was also noted (r=0.52 P<0.001).ROC for glycated albumin as a marker of DM, area under the curve (AUC)=0.639, sensitivity=55.2%, specificity=75%.ROC for HbA1C as a marker for diabetes, AUC=0.755, sensitivity=76.7% specificity=78.6%. Conclusion: Glycated albumin can be used as an additional marker to glycated hemoglobin in the monitoring of glycaemic status in type 2 diabetes.