Utility of point-of-care vs reference laboratory testing for the evaluation of glucose levels

Aims: To assess the level of agreement between point-of-care and laboratory reference glucose values in defining glycaemic status. Methods: We analysed 1292 overweight/obese, non-institutionalized participants, aged 40–65 years, in the San Juan Overweight Adults Longitudinal Study. Fasting venous blood glucose was determined using a point-of-care Bayer Contour Blood Glucose Meter and by Vitros System 250 instrument (laboratory). American Diabetes Association thresholds were used to classify participants into normoglycaemia (< 5.6 mmol/l), prediabetes (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/l), or diabetes groups (≥ 7 mmol/l). Results: Bland–Altman plot analysis showed a slope of 0.04 (P=0.002) for the regression between the mean difference and the average of the two methods. The slopes were significantly different from zero among people with normoglycaemia (β=–0.57, P<0.001), and prediabetes (β=–0.75, P<0.001) but not among people with diabetes (β=–0.02, P=0.68). When the prediabetes and diabetes groups were merged into one group, the slope was 0.01, and the glucose values remained similar using the two methods (P=0.76). Conclusion: Point-of-care blood glucose measurement may be useful to screen people with diabetes, and to assess glucose among individuals with diabetes where blood can be drawn, but laboratory tests are unavailable or untimely.