Point-of-care HbA1c Measurements in Oral Cancer and Control Patients in Hungary

Abstract

Background/aim: This study aimed to investigate the link between preoperative glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and oral cancer patients and diabetes mellitus (DM). We aimed to highlight the importance of point-of-care HbA1c measurements in oral cancer patients.

Patients and methods: A total of 214 patients were admitted to the Department of Inpatient Care at Semmelweis University's Department of Oromaxillofacial Surgery and Stomatology between 1 September 2020 and 21 May 2021; individuals, who had undergone maxillofacial surgery under general anesthesia, were included in the study.

Results: There was a significant difference between the oral cancer group and the control group in terms of smoking (p=0.009) and alcohol intake (p=0.003). There was no statistically significant difference regarding sex (p=0.132) and DM (p=0.147) between the two groups. The tumor group had an 8.52% greater prevalence of DM, which was not significant. In the oral cancer group, twenty individuals (17.69%) had a higher HbA1c level than the upper level of the optimal metabolic value (6.9%). Nine participants (8.91%) in the control group had an HbA1c value greater than 6.9%, which means that their metabolic level was poor. The oral cancer group did not have higher blood glucose levels than those of the control group.

Conclusion: No direct connection between high blood glucose levels and oral cancer was found. However, point-of-care HbA1c measurement can be a diagnostic tool to detect DM in the dental office.

Keywords: Diabetes mellitus; HbA1c; alcohol; hyperglycemia; oral cancer; smoking.