Oral blood may be comparable to to finger-stick blood in diabetes screening

New York University researchers have found that blood collected from deep pockets of periodontal inflammation can be effective in measuring blood glucose. A new study has shown that the oral blood is comparable to finger-stick blood in detecting levels of hemoglobin A1c, commonly used to test for diabetes. An A1c reading of 6.5 or higher is considered in the diabetic range using the finger-stick method, and with the new oral blood method a reading of 6.3 corresponds to that figure. “In light of these findings, the dental visit could be a useful opportunity to conduct an initial diabetes screening – an important first step in identifying those patients who need further testing to determine their diabetes status,” said Shiela Strauss, the principal investigator of the study. The one-year study used a hemoglobin A1c testing kit developed for dentist to take finger-stick samples that was adapted to take oral blood samples as well. All it requires is a single drop of blood to be collected.