Diabetes - Alternate Site Testing

                                                                                         

What is Alternate Site Testing?
Alternate Site Testing may be a comfort for people with diabetes. Alternate Site Testing as the name suggests, allows people suffering from diabetes to take blood samples for glucose testing using parts of the body other than the fingertips.

Why is Alternate Site Testing less painful?
By tradition for diabetes tests, fingertips have been used for blood glucose self-monitoring. Fingertips are full of nerve endings. So it is easy to obtain enough drop of blood for accurate readings. But at the same time, fingertips feel pain more readily. With AST blood samples are collected from other sites such as forearms, upper arms, thighs, calves, and hands that have fewer nerve endings than the fingertips, thus resulting in less pain. A 2004 US diabetes patient market study showed that of patients who tested using alternative sites, seven in ten believe alternate site testing to be less painful.

Limitations of Alternate Site Testing
Alternate Site Testing is possible only with certain newer blood glucose meters. AST requires a smaller drop of blood to produce accurate blood glucose readings. Testing with a fingertip sample may identify a hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) level sooner than a test with a forearm. AST is not advisable for patients who suspect hypoglycemia since forearm testing may fail to detect hypoglycemia.

Who should undertake Alternate Site Testing?
AST is a better choice for people having diabetes and whose occupation requires significant use of their fingers such as musicians, mechanics, typists, dentists or people who spend a lot of time at a computer keyboard. AST offers fingertip protection and less pain during your diabetes test. Moreover, Alternate Site Testing has been approved by the FDA. Visit Diabetes Care Club for more information on Alternate Site Testing

About the author:
In order to have a healthy life, you need to manage your diabetic condition. Diabetes Care Club located in Nashville, Tennessee helps you manage your diabetes effectively with wide range of Diabetes Testing Supplies. They are authorized distributor of all name-brand testing supplies - DDI, Agamatrix, Home Diagnostics, LifeScan, Roche, Bayer, and Abbott. Get meters, batteries, control solution, test strips, lancets and lancing devices everything you need with free home delivery.

Article Source: http://www.Free-Articles-Zone.com