Glucose Test - false positive and no re-test?

[Coronet08]

Has anyone had proper glucose testing, and how do you fight incorrect diagnosis? NHS seems pretty Orwellian to me.
Had non-fasting GTT test without warning and remember drinking juice and taking sugary snacks with me to the hospital. Either way the result showed up as over 11 after 1 hour, which is not in line with previous blood tests. I'm pretty sure it's contaminated with the stuff I ate during the test.
I'm eating healthily overall, watch my sugar intake, and exercise every day. I am not overweight and don't have any family history of diabetes.
So I had a call from diabetes team and based on this one reading they have diagnosed me with Gestational Diabetes, told me my baby is more likely to die, I need to change my diet and I will need to be induced early...
I have got the testing kit and all the home test results have been ridiculously low if anything.
I'm pretty sure I dont have GT. Got in touch with the team and no response. Midwives are not able to help and referring to the diabetes team again...
This blanket approach is very bizzare, I should have declined the test but I didn't expect this bullying attitude and jumping to conclusions. How many women don't do the research and just get depressed after speaking to these people?!

What is a non fasting GTT test? Do you mean high sugars were detected in your urine?

I can't comment on current practices but for a GTT test I went to the hospital after fasting, bloods were taken, I drank a glucose drink, sat for a few hours in a room with lots of other women undergoing the test, had bloods taken again.

Hopefully someone currently pregnant will be along shortly to confirm if the NHS is able to do full GTT testing at present.

I really wouldn't be concerned by any of this and would be grateful of the extra scans / contact you'll receive from midwives during this time. You've said your blood sugars are fine with your usual diet so don't change it?? You will only be induced early if there is a need for you to be induced.

It is possible for those without diabetes to have a spike following a very high carb meal. What are your sugar levels at home? I'm sure if they continue to be really low the team will make a decision as to whether or not you need to continue testing/have extra care. It's better for them to be over cautious than to miss someone who has GD.

Did you have a random blood glucose/hba1c or a glucose tolerance test (which isn’t usually ‘sprung on you’ and you are asked to fast beforehand) where you literally are given sugary drinks in the test?

I am trying to understand the scenario where someone gets put in for a GTT (NOT a random blood sugar) without warning, not disbelieving you OP

Also- gestational diabetes can happen if you have a normal BMI and even if you eat the healthiest diet. It’s to do with your placenta and insulin resistance. You can have it even with zero history. X

Sure, if I had consistent high readings and/or symptoms - I get it, can happen to anyone.
I had a glucose test: went for 26 week midwife appt and she decided to do a test afterwards, gave me a form and I was given a sugary drink. Then after 1 hour they took the blood test which showed high reading.
They are not planning the fasting test. And wrote to my GP straight away, and also giving indication that now I have to test 4 times a day for the rest of my pregnancy. Also I will have extra scans.
My bump was measured and I'm just right for my gestation, recently had a scan which showed a bang on average baby.. so there is nothing to worry about apart from NHS jumping to conclusions and making people prick their finger 4 times a day for months. All advice I'll get is eat fewer sugars and carbs.

wheckTangled, all my readings so far have been under 5

Just do the finger prick tests and then you can show you haven't got gestational diabetes but if your readings are outside of the 'normal' then you might actually have it! Surely you would rather know for sure. The risks to your baby can be managed then. Gestational diabetes is something you develop as the pregnancy progresses. I've had it twice the first time I was 28 weeks when diagnosed second time I had the fasting glucose test at 16 weeks 24 weeks and then again at 30 weeks which is when I showed an issue with blood sugars. 11 is very high so unlikely they are getting wrong!

But for all they know you do have GD. I don't get why you're so angry about it. You had a high glucose result so they've referred you to the right team and asked you to monitor your levels. When you next speak to them they might say 'hey these levels are great maybe it was an anomaly' and recommend you just check once a day from now on and let them know if you get any high readings. It would be unusual to have a reading of 11 without other issues so I can see why they wouldn't question it.

I'm just trying to understand how the system works, and if there is a way out of this track I've been put on. The only appointment I'll get with diabetes team will be a phone chat when they'll give me advice on diet... they have not mentioned there is a way out, and went straight to induction talk which worried me

A reading under 5 is an indication of diabetes. A person without diabetes would have a reading of between 5-7.5. Alway! Regardless of how much they have eaten/not eaten. Readings below 5 can indicate the inability to process insulin properly. Low blood sugars are bad as well as high readings. They will also do your hbac1 bloods at your next appointment which will give them an average of your last 3 months sugars this will definitely show if you have diabetes. As a previous poster said occasionally high/low readings can happen but if they happen regularly you have diabetes.

With diabetes in pregnancy the placenta matures at a faster rate making a higher risk of stillbirth. You still don't have to consent to it and I think you're getting ahead of yourself if you haven't even had a follow up chat with them since your readings have been in range. I'm sure someone will be in touch soon and you can discuss all of your concerns with them. I expect they wanted to spell out the risks because some people don't take it seriously.

Your not supposed to eat after the sugary drink. It’s supposed to see how far your bloods go down after that drink.

To be honest I tested positive for GD with a bmi of 19 and a decent diet, never had any issues with blood sugar and I got to get scans every fortnight which was lovely.

Really? I had a non fasting reading of under 5 in the last test and it was considered normal.
Admittedly, I found this online but is this not the correct guide:
"A fasting blood sugar level below 100 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) — 5.6 millimoles per liter (mmol/L) — is considered normal. A fasting blood sugar level from 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 7.0 mmol/L) is considered prediabetes. ... A fasting blood sugar level of 126 mg/dL (7.0 mmol/L) or higher indicates type 2 diabetes."

4 - 5.5 is a normal (fasting) reading for a non diabetic.

I’m not really so sure why your so angry? GD can happen to anyone. My best friends had it they’re both slim good diets within BMI ... I’m over weight with medium / high BMI and haven’t had it. It’s not a reflection on you or your diet.

Would you prefer they didn’t attempt to look after you / be careful and something bad happen?

As for induction it hasn’t come to that yet. If it does however inductions aren’t always the horror stories you read about. I’ve had 3 all went off perfectly with no damage to me and no need for instrumental interventions. 2 of my inductions were because my placenta failed and saved my babies lives so I think it’s silly to view the process as such a negative when actually they can really help

I had GD and never had a reading as high as 11! Even after drinking coke and eating sweets.
Highest was about 6.5/7.

I survived eating yoghurt and jacket potatoes and it rarely went over 5.

Surely you aren't just doing fasting sugars? I took that you saying all your readings were under 5 meant you are testing after eating too. It's been 7 years since I had to test and I know recommended times and levels change. I had to test 4 times a day but at different times of the day. So day 1 was upon waking, 1 hour after lunch, before dinner and before bed. Day 2 1 hour after breakfast, before lunch, after dinner, before bed, so the times changed every day. I also had to keep a food diary with amounts and time of day etc. I was told a fasting sugar of over 5.5 was an issue as was a reading below 4.5. An after meal reading of over 7.5 was also considered to be high. I had to take metformin which helped with my readings.

4 times isn't many really. I'm diabetic (type one) and before I got my flash glucose monitor I was testing 8+ times a day easily. I agree with pp about doing it different times of the day.

I got GD in each of my pregnancies and I’m a healthy weight and exercise regularly. In my case it’s genetic. With each I monitored religiously and barely ate any carbs ( you get more sensitive as ur pregnancy progresses. So it’s important to keep checking as at one point I could only have 5 strawberries before going over).
I found the GD route throughly depressing from the appointments of doom to the constant talk of how my baby could die- it’s not necessary for a pregnant woman to hear those words every appointment. Esp. If they are asking questions. So you have my deepest sympathies if your GD team/ hospital apps are anything like mine were. I know a lady through work who also speaks of the same experience.
I followed everything they requested 1st pregnancy and ended up with an EMCS for a supposed HUGE baby ( over 10lb predicted) anyway, he was 7lb and change. 2nd and 3rd I did loads of reading and I mean loads! About food, about scans for weight and about GD and diabetes in general. I took loads of exercise ( esp after eating) stayed away from almost all carbs and did my own bloods. And I declined ALL GD appointments. I picked up a monitor and that was it. I was loads happier and felt like I had a ‘normal pregnancy’. I Went to 41+5 and then 42+ 1- with each, I declined growth scans but I did opt into placental function and fluid scans every 2 days after 40 weeks. And I was happy with this as it was my choice based on what I had read. Remember, it’s your choice. I know with me they were ( in their own way) trying to keep my baby safe but it was very heavy handed, needlessly scary and at times bullying.
It’s a difficult thing to manage because if you do have it there is an increased risk to your baby, but your care should be a co-constructed plan between you and the NHS, not something enforced on you. I found my consultant midwife at the hospital super and she drew me up a truely personalised plan so maybe you could ask to see her/ him where you are. And remember you can decline or accept any treatment at anytime and also ask a billion million questions. For what it’s worth my NHS trust is still operating some
V. Dodgy GD advice ( have a glass of orange juice or a jacket spud wtf?!) but if you stay away from carbs ( so think healthy fats and loads of veg) you won’t go far wrong.
If I were you I’d go in with an open mind ( knocked me for 6 with the first I couldn’t quite get my head round it), write down your questions to ask and see how you get on- you wouldn’t want to miss it cos it can, if left untreated, be damaging, but it is ( for some women- others are not able to do diet controlled alone) manageable. Fingers crossed for you.

@Xiaohei it's the same way they tell type one diabetics they must eat x amount of carbs and can eat anything as long as they give insulin for it. Life is so much easier (and better controlled diabetes!) if you just eat fewer carbs.

It’s possible that you have Impaired Glucose Tolerance which affects up to 30% of adults. It just means your blood sugar spikes unnaturally high after carbs but does go down again. A reading of 11 is extremely high, even with juice and snacks which are small in portion size and most likely not eaten at the same as the glucose solution. In some cases IGT can lead to diabetes but it’s good to be aware of it just so you can make lifestyle changes.

I was misdiagnosed with GD when it turned out I had IGT before pregnancy. My fasting numbers are normal/low but they spike into diabetic range after meals or high sugar foods. I’m a size 6 with a bmi of 18 so weight never played a role. I’m glad I found out by accident because I adjusted my diet and feel much better all round. I used to get tiredness, palpitations or nausea after very high carb meals and never knew why. Now it’s obvious it was the sugar spike so I always eat low carb or mix it with fibre/protein for slower absorption.

Never, ever in one gazillion million years did I ever think I’d say this ( and for some daft reason I’m now having a little cry about it. Think it’s cos it was a bit hard/scary/ not what I’d planned at the time) but I’m so glad I had it. And if I had a choice - I’d do it all again. It’s meant I’ve had to get educated, like REALLY educated about food and as a result now I eat waaaay more healthily than I ever did and make informed decisions. No way would I have taken the time to learn so much otherwise. These days I still eat in a similar fashion. Oh but those long long days of sucking an individual chocolate for as long as it lasted, waiting an hr, checking bloods and repeat were a bit tortuous!!

Please join the Facebook group gestational diabetes mums uk or look on gestational diabetes UK. Very helpful with advice and very knowledgeable. They get a lot of ladies who have the same concerns and feelings as you are having.
Having a blood sugar level of 11 is very high! The cut off is 7.8mmol my level was 7.8mmol and I had GD and I never got a blood glucose level of 11.
I had no risk factors apart from sister having GD (she has pcos, so increased insulin resistance).
What kind of foods are you eating? As if your having a high carb meal or sugar treat your blood glucose can spike before the hour you test.
I highly recommend the Facebook group and website.

In my experience to get any decisions made in the NHS, (definitely any difficult decisions), you need to speak to a consultant. If you want the diagnosis reviewed that's what I'd recommend. Also if there are any discussions about induction, you should ask to discuss that with a consultant. The diabetes advice given out by midwives, dieticians and junior doctors is often poorly informed, patronising and usually very frightening. You get much better advice on the well known diabetes forums. Women who have diabetes in pregnancy have higher rates of depression than average. In my view that isn't helped by the endless doom laden prophesies from the NHS.

(I'm a type 1 and had a completely healthy pregnancy and baby with considerably higher sugar levels than you'd normally see in GD. It's hard but it is possible. I wish I'd been allowed to enjoy it more).