Evaluation of Hematological Changes in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Their Correlation with Glycemic Control

T2DM is known to cause chronic hyperglycemia and results in a set of systemic complications. Hematological parameters, red cell indices testing, and platelet parameters in combination with white cell count may also become the parameters of inflammatory status and glycemic control.

Patients diagnosed with T2DM were enrolled in a cross-sectional observational study with 120 subjects (90 diagnosed with T2DM and 30 age- and sex-matched controls). An automated hematology analyser was used to carry out complete blood counts (CBC). The measurements that were conducted on HbA1c used HPLC. The T2DM patients were divided into three groups based on glycemic control; there were good glycemic control (HbA1c 7.0% or less), moderate (HbA1c 7.1-8.5%), and poor control (HbA1c 8.5% or more).

The T2DM patients had a considerable increment in total leukocyte count (mean = 8.94 10 9/L) and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR = 2.97) as compared with the controls (mean WBC = 6.21 10 9/L, NLR = 1.85). The mean platelet volume (MPV) value was higher in poorly-controlled diabetics (11.2 fL) than in the well-controlled ones (9.4 fL). There was a negative relationship between HbA1c and hemoglobin levels (r = -0.45, P = 0.01), whereas positive relationships with HbA1c and WBC count (r = 0.38, P = 0.02) and MPV (r = 0.42, P = 0.01), respectively.

T2DM is linked with immense changes in blood and lab values, especially among those with mixed glycemic control. Higher WBC, MPV, and NLR indicate a low level of inflammation and hyperactivity of platelets, which might also be a risk factor that leads to complications of diabetes.