Hyperglycemia: Direct Primary Care Interventions

Hyperglycemia refers to high blood sugar levels seen in diabetic patients. If not recognized and well-managed, hyperglycemia can raise the risk for cardiovascular disease, renal failure, poor wound healing, and stroke. Because of this, regular physical examinations are essential so that even small changes in your blood sugar levels and overall state of health can be recognized and treated. Here are some direct primary care interventions your physician may recommend to manage and treat your hyperglycemia.

Weight Management Program

Losing weight can have a dramatic effect on your blood sugar levels. Obesity is not only associated with diabetes, but also with heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and poor immune function. If you are struggling to lose weight on your own, your direct primary care physician can recommend an effective hospital-based weight management program.

If a public hospital-based weight management program is not the right choice for you, consider the services of a dietician or nutritionist. Not only can they help you make healthy food choices to help you lose weight, but they can also develop a therapeutic diet plan to help manage your hyperglycemia so that your blood sugar levels will remain within normal limits. As you begin to lose weight, you will gain more self-confidence and motivation to keep going until you have reached your weight-loss goals. 

Medication Monitoring

Another direct primary care intervention your doctor may recommend for your hyperglycemia is medication monitoring. It is thought that a number of prescription medications may play a role in hyperglycemia, and because of this, your physician may want to monitor the effects of your current medication to evaluate their effects on your blood sugar levels.

If your prescription medications are found to be contributing factors to your diabetes, your doctor may elect to reduce the dosage or replace the medications with ones that are less likely to negatively affect your blood sugar levels. Medications that may cause hyperglycemia include cardiovascular drugs known as beta-blockers, lipid-lowering agents known as statin drugs, and oral corticosteroids, which are often prescribed for inflammatory conditions. 

If you have hyperglycemia and diabetes, see your direct primary care physician regularly for checkups. If warranted, they may refer you to an endocrinologist, a physician specializing in the treatment of endocrine system disorders, including diabetes. Working with both your direct primary care physician and an endocrinologist may help ensure that your blood glucose levels remain within normal limits.