I have thirst, bad shakes, dizziness, vomiting, abdominal pain, and I am having problems staying awake. The doctor suggested it might be diabetes, and did a for a blood test which was 149 mg/dl [8.3 mmol/L]. I then did some home glucose monitoring and got results ranging 5.3-10 mmol/L [95-180 mg/dl], but I do not understand what these figures mean, and the doctor was unsure was unsure what to do. Do these figures represent normal blood sugar levels?

First of all, a fasting blood sugar of 149 mg/dl [8.3 mmol/L] is too high. The Classification and Diagnosis of Diabetes guideline is a value grater than 126 mg/dl [7 mmol/L] on more than one occasion. If you had one of 149 mg/dl [8.3 mmol/L], that is too high. This is despite what you have obtained through home glucose monitoring.

I would suggest that you demand that your physician clarify this issue for you as soon as possible. When you do monitoring for blood sugars after meals, the sugars do rise. That is why we use the fasting glucose as a condition that has been standardized. Another test that is also helpful is the hemoglobin A1c. This test gives you a number that corresponds with your average daily blood sugar over the previous three months.

JTL