59
2
Comparing Your Meter Result to a Lab Result
A common question is how the blood sugar results on your meter compare to the lab results. Your blood sugar
can change quickly, especially after eating, taking medication, or physical activity. If you test yourself in the
morning and then go to the healthcare professional’s ofce for a blood sugar test, your results will probably
not match, even if you are fasting. This is typically not a problem with your meter, it just means that time has
elapsed and your blood sugar has changed.
If you want to compare your meter result to the lab result, you must be fasting. Take your meter to the
healthcare professional’s ofce, and test yourself by ngerstick within ve minutes of having blood drawn
from your arm by a healthcare professional. Keep in mind that the lab uses different technology than the
meter, and that blood sugar meters for self testing generally read somewhat lower than the lab result.
If you are fasting and you do a ngerstick test within ve minutes of having your blood drawn, here are the
general guidelines to compare your meter result to the lab result:
• If your blood sugar is below 75 mg/dL, your results generally should fall within ±15 mg/dL of the lab
result.
• If your blood sugar is equal to or over 75 mg/dL, your results generally should fall within ±20 % of the
lab result.
To Next Page
Loading...
Need help?
General
