HA1C Test
 

Hi, I just had a DOT physical. The Dr. would only give me a 3 month card because I am diabetic. Can anyone tell me at what level my A1c test needs to be to get more than a 3 month card. I am 8.1 now

Thanks

Why didn't you ask the Dr. that question instead of posting on the internet?

It is not a level, the test shows if your diabetes is under control and getting better. If you are not controlling it the test will show this and you will not be able to retain your CDL.

Was this your regular doctor? Of all the DOT physicals I have taken none of them had the time to do the lab test necessary to obtain a A1c result.

I have always told them I was a Type 2 Diabetic and I always get a one year card. Usually they do a finger prick test and as long as your under 180 your good to go. At least that has been my experience.

a1c
 

i just took my dot physical and im type 2 also all they wanted was to see my last blood test from my family doc i had it faxed it was 7.1 and the dot doc said that was fine. now my card before was good for 2 yrs and this card is also good for 2 yrs.

a1c
 

i forgot to add my last test was april of this yr the dot doc did say he likes to see diabetics ck there a1c at least 2 times a yr but for the last 6 yrs i have it done once a yr and had no problems.

Re: a1c
 

Legally your card is only valid for one year. Per FMCSA regs diabetics must be examined at least yearly.
================================================

Garloo, how long have you been diabetic? Is this your first DOT physical since becoming diabetic?

If you are a new diabetic this is probably why you were given a 3 month card. The examining physician wants to make sure that you are making real efforts at controlling your diabeties and if you can show him/her that you have made improvements you should get a 1 year certificate at the end of the 3 month one. Work at keeping your daily testings under 150 and shoot for an A1C test as close to a 7 as possible. Even a 7.5 on your next one will probably be enough to show you are working on it.

thanks uturn i stand corrected cked my card

Thanks for replying. I have had many DOT physicals, but this was the
first time I did not go to my own Doc. The company I work for paid for it so I thought I would give it a try. I guess that I am a bit over the level. I am going to see my own Doc and see what he can do. My level has been going
down for the last 2 years, but I am not quite there yet. My own Doc always
gives me a 1 year card, and I have an A1C about every 90 days or so. THANKS.

Having been a type 2 diabetic for the last 5 years, and controlling it with Metformin, diet, and some (cough-cough) exercise, the need for testing your own blood and getting blood work done every 3 to 6 months is very important if you want to maintain your health and your driving job.

At my last dot physical in July my blood tested at 190 that morning, but the doctor asked if I had eaten and I said of yes, my regular bowl of grape nuts. He wasn't too concerned then.

Also, this is a tip for all you drivers that are type 2. Please Please Please remember to bring the latest copy of your blood work, specificly your HB1AC results not more than 6 months old to your dot physical. If you don't, you will only get a 3 month card until you produce the test results.

This will save you time, money, and aggrevation at the doctor's.

Codger

Wow, I have never had anyone giving me a DOT physical ask for my latest A1c test.....never. Now Crete wanted one annually, but they were the only company that asked for it.

Some examiners want to see your latest A1C, others don't. Some will only want to see it if you have some sugar in your urine to see how your overall control is.

I have also had DOT physicals where they did an Accu-check even though I wasn't spilling. Had another one one time that wanted to see my blood sugar log.

The bottom line is if you have any kind of medical complications, such as diabetes, high blood pressure, taking regular medications, etc then you need to be fully prepared at each DOT physical by bringing with you recent lab results, personal medical logs, letter(s) from your physicians, etc as needed for your condition(s) to show to the ME upon request.

From what I have heard and this is just from hearsay, anyone please correct me or give your input please, but I have heard that if you test over a 130 in blood sugar at any DOT physical you will not be hired by that company, but again, I have only heard this from a retired Instructor of a training school.

I can tell you as a Type 2 diabetic myself my current A1C is a 6.1, the doctor says people with a good A1C will be between 5.0 and 7.0, anything over 7.0 is serious issues.

My blood sugar runs 110 to 150 depending on what I have eaten that week, it can vary but my blood sugar has never been over 219 in the 5+ years I have had diabetes and my current 6.1 A1C is the highest its ever been.

Basically from what I have heard is that if I test for a new company with a 150 blood sugar I will be denied for employment, not sure how true this is but I don't see any certain blood sugar level rating on DOT Regs either. So it must be a company policy.

I am diet and med controlled, I take 2 Metformin a day and watch what I eat most of the time lol.

Years ago a fasting blood sugar reading of under 130 was considered normal. The ADA has since changed that to 80-120 with a consistent fasting sugar level over that to be cause to keep an eye on it. It is the A1C test however that is used in actual diagnosis and long term monitoring.

Last I knew the urine dip test they do at a physical has a cut off where a person had to have had a blood sugar over 150 for a long enough period of time for it to end up showing in their urine. Pretty much it will take it staying high for most of a day for it to show in the urine.

Anyway this is something that companies usually do not get involved with and leave up to the examining doctor to determine if the driver should be granted medical clearance and if so for how long under FMCSA regulations.

Oh yeah, that is just exactly the sort of attitude that he came here for. :bigthumbsdown:

Sorry 'bout that Garloo, I hope that the other posters were able to provide some relevant information that helped you. Preferably posters that are currently engaged/employed as operators of Class A designated Motor Vehicles............or possess the necessary previous experience to provide helpful, not irrelevant and deprecating style guidance or opinions. Out with the poser riff-raff!

Oh silly me, telling someone to discuss a medical issue with a Dr., when I should have realized the the truckstop doctors would have better information. I guess they're right down the hall from the truckstop lawyers and accross from the truckstop accountants. What was I thinking. :o

You weren't. You were deflecting and dodging as usual. A sad way to meander through life, for sure.

The truth shall set you free................

The feds continue to change what is acceptable with both blood sugar and blood pressure levels. Proper nutrition and some exercise can work wonders with both.

I usually have my first meal of the day consisting of 75 grams carbs (300 cal) 60 grams protein (240 cal) with about 5 grams fat (45cal)...then about 1hr later I drink a creatine shake containing about 40 grams simple sugars ...When driving OTR I ate this same way everyday incuding the day of my DOT exam ,but I had a caffeine addiction then ,so I usually had about 1.5 -2 -22oz roughly (120-160 grams of sugar and 480-640 calories) DR Peppers b4 the test ...What Im saying is that if you're failing the test for eating a bowl of corn flakes you better watch yourself b/c you are failing for a reason.