Evaluation of glycosylated hemoglobin applications in a public hospital from Mar del Plata

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) establishes the measurement of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in all patients with diabetes at the initial assessment and during follow-up. The frequency of the request depends on the clinical situation, the treatment regimen and the doctor's judgment. The objective was to evaluate the HbA1c requests at the HIGA Oscar Alende of the city of Mar del Plata. In order to know the periodicity of the prescription, the population was divided according to the frequency of the request for HbA1c, and their value. To assess the presence of altered HbA1c results due to anemia, the total hemoglobin value was evaluated. In the 1956 requests for HbA1c, 720 errors were detected as established by the ADA; 47.4% corresponded to requests made with an inadequate frequency and 52.6% did not have an accompanying blood count. A high percentage of HbA1c requests made incorrectly was observed. This work demonstrates the importance of the control of repetitive requests to achieve the improvement in the quality of the laboratory results and a correct medical decision making.