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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Elevated Blood Sugar Levels After Recovering From Transverse Myelitis?

My husband had transverse myelitis in December. It was treated with steroids. He now has a glucose reading of 136. Will this eventually normalize? He s taking metformin. His doctor is calling him a diabetic, it seems my husband s having trouble believing him.
Mon, 30 Apr 2018
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hello and Welcome to ‘Ask A Doctor’ service.
I have reviewed your query and here is my advice.

Steroid therapy increases the chances for spikes in blood sugar levels (BSL). Gradually, they will get optimized. However, having a glucose reading 136 is not revealing, he is a diabetic.

We should know first when did he take the measurement, fasting? Or after eating?

So, the very first thing is to determine he is a diabetic. For this, you should run the following tests:
- Fasting blood sugar
- Oral glucose tolerance test
- HbA1c test

After analyzing these results, we can definitely conclude that he is a diabetic or not. However, to me, a blood sugar of 136 is in favor of a pre-diabetic.

Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Regards,
Dr. Albana Sejdini
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  Anonymous's Response
Anonymous's  Response
The best option for your husband is to take tabs for now as his blood sugars are raised.Get an HBA1C test done it gives you the average of last three months blood sugar.This may convince him
Note: For further follow-up, discuss your blood glucose reports with our diabetologist. Click here.
Disclaimer: These answers are for your information only and not intended to replace your relationship with your treating physician.
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What Causes Elevated Blood Sugar Levels After Recovering From Transverse Myelitis?

Hello and Welcome to ‘Ask A Doctor’ service. I have reviewed your query and here is my advice. Steroid therapy increases the chances for spikes in blood sugar levels (BSL). Gradually, they will get optimized. However, having a glucose reading 136 is not revealing, he is a diabetic. We should know first when did he take the measurement, fasting? Or after eating? So, the very first thing is to determine he is a diabetic. For this, you should run the following tests: - Fasting blood sugar - Oral glucose tolerance test - HbA1c test After analyzing these results, we can definitely conclude that he is a diabetic or not. However, to me, a blood sugar of 136 is in favor of a pre-diabetic. Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further. Regards, Dr. Albana Sejdini