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OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the performance of a hand-held ketone sensor that is able to measure blood beta-hydroxybutyrate (beta-HBA) concentrations within 30 s in patients with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) and patients who attend a weight management clinic. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Two groups of patients were studied: 19 patients admitted with DKA and 156 patients attending a weight management clinic. Paired capillary and venous whole blood samples were measured using the ketone sensor and also using an enzymatic laboratory reference method. RESULTS: The ketone sensor accurately measured beta-HBA concentrations in patients with DKA (limits of agreement -0.9 to + 1.0 mmol/l) or starvation-induced ketonemia (limits of agreement -0.5 to +0.5 mmol/l). CONCLUSIONS: This ketone sensor accurately measures whole blood beta-HBA concentrations w...

OBJECTIVE: To measure well-being and treatment satisfaction and their correlates in older people with diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A postal survey was conducted of 1,000 diabetic patients aged > or = 60 years, representing 56% of the resident older diabetic population in an inner-city health district with a largely indigenous population of 230,000 people and a widely varied socioeconomic mix. Well-being and treatment satisfaction were measured with diabetes-specific instruments and correlated with patient data held in a central register. RESULTS: There was an 81% response. The general well-being scores (median [interquartile range]) for patients on diet alone, tablets, and insulin were 54 (44-60), 53 (42-61), and 48 (35-56) (P < 0.001 comparing insulin with diet and tablets) compared with a scale maximum of 66. Treatment sati...

Aims/hypothesis. To examine changes in diabetes care provision after the introduction of a district diabetes information system.¶Methods. All patients with diabetes registered on the system between 1993 and 1998 (n = 6544) were included in the analysis. Drop-out cohort analysis was used to handle population changes, logistic regression models with general estimating equations were used to examine changes in clinical performance over time.¶Results. After the introduction of the system, care processes improved appreciably, in both primary and secondary care. The proportion of patients receiving a preventative care review within the calendar year rose from 56 % in 1993 to 67 % in 1998. The proportion of these in whom each process was completed improved in all categories from 1993 to 1998: blood pressure 96 % to 98 %; glycaemic check 67 % ...