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Glossary

Glossary of terms commonly used on diabetes websites and discussion groups

Most of the terms here refer to the British healthcare system.

512, 712, 508, 507c, 507, 506, 505
The Paradigm 512 and 712 are MiniMed's latest pumps for sale in the UK. The 712 holds more insulin than the 512.
A
Actrapid. A clear soluble insulin made by Novo-Nordisk.
A1c
Haemoglobin A1c. (Also called Glycosylated haemoglobin test). A test which measures your average blood glucose control over the preceding several months. This test is generally given at 3 month intervals. The Americans spell haemoglobin hemoglobin - without the "a".
ACE inhibitor
Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor. Slows down the progression of diabetic kidney disease. It is also used to lower blood pressure.
ACR
Albumin to Creatine Ratio
ADA
American Diabetes Association. Also Americans with Disibilities Act.
ADTC
Area Drug and Therapeutics Committee. Scotland has a seperate legal system from England and Wales. This committee helps advise about all new drugs.
AFC
Agenda for Change
AGE
Advanced Glycation Endproduct
A&E
Accident and Emergency. In the US this is the Emergency Room.
Animas
US maker of insulin pumps. June 2005 their latest model was the IR1250.
Appt
Shorthand for appointment.
Aventis
A European insulin and pharmaceutical product manufacturer. Previously called Hoechst. Aventis make Lantus (a brand name for glargine) - a particularly flat long acting insulin.
Basal
Your body nearly always need a small amount of insulin to hold everything steady, even if you've not eaten food. On injections this is usually provided by the long-acting insulin. A pump gives you a small amount all the time, called the basal rate. You need to find out your own correct basal rate. See also bolus.
BDA
British Diabetic Association (now called Diabetes UK)
Beta-cells
Cells in the pancreas which, in someone without diabetes, produce insulin.
β-OHB
Beta-Hydroxybutyrate. Full technical name for the ketones that collect in the blood. A small quantity is normal: 0·1 - 1·0 mmol/L is OK. 1·1 to 3·0 mmol/L is too high. You should take fast acting insulin to bring down your BG level. Above 3·0 is dangerously high. Take insulin and see a doctor immediately. While your BG remains high, drink a glass of water every 15 minutes. Your body needs this.
BG
Blood Glucose. Some clinics (and meters) measure plasma glucose. To convert, multiply blood glucose by 1.12 to get plasma glucose.
BMI
Body Mass Index. Literally, how fat you are for your height. Weight in kilograms is divided by height in meters. So if I'm 90 kg and 1.75 m tall, my BMI (reaches for calculator...) is 90/1.75= about 51. Could do better!
BM
Blood glucose. Literally it stands for Boehringer Mannheim, a German pharmaceutical company (now called Roche). BM-Test is a blood glucose testing strip they make.
Bolus
Literally a "lump" of insulin. Insulin you give yourself in one go, for a reason - usually because you are about to eat carbohydrate, or because you want to lower your blood glucose level. The latest pumps can give this insulin quickly, or spread out over a time. You need to find out for yourself how much insulin you need for different foods, and how much 1 unit will lower your blood glucose level. See also basal.
BP
Blood pressure. Normally 2 numbers - eg 140/90. As the heart beats the pressure of the blood goes up and down. The first number is the highest pressure, the second number the lowest pressure. Recorded usually as millimetres of mercury, or mmHg.
BSL
Blood sugar level. Equivalent of blood glucose level, or BG.
BTW
By the way...
Cardiovascular disease
Damage to the heart.
Cataracts
The glassy coating of the outer eye clouding over. Cataracts are twice as common in people with diabetes - and occur 10 years earlier.
CCR
Creatinine Clearance Rate
CDA
Canadian Diabetes Association
CDE
Certified Diabetes Educator. US equivalent of the Diabetes Specialist Nurse.
CGMS
Continuous Glucose Monitoring System - a system for recording your glucose level continuously. Launched by MiniMed in 2000.
CGWT
Care Group Workforce Team
CHAI
Commission for Healthcare Audit and Improvement. UK government group.
CHI
Commission for Health Inspection
CHO or Carb
Carbohydrates. CHO is its chemical name, since it is made up of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.
CI
Confidence interval
CNS
Central Nervous System
Contact
An infusion set sold by MiniMed. It has a fine steel needle for easy insertion.
Correction bolus
If your blood glucose level is high, you can take insulin to bring it down to a normal level. You need to know how sensitive you are to insulin, and how much to take. This is called a correction bolus. See also Insulin on Board.
Cozmo
Maker of insulin pumps.
CP
CP Pharmaceuticals. An insulin manufacturer based in Wrexham, Wales.
CREST
Clinical Resource Efficiency Support Team
CSBS
Clinical Standards Board for Scotland
CSII
Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin Infusion. The full medical name for insulin pump therapy.
CWP
Changing Workforce Programme
D
Disetronic. Manufacturer of insulin pumps.
DAFNE
Dosage adjustment for normal eating. A new concept of insulin adjustment available in the UK.
DCCT
Diabetes Control and Complication Trial. A 10-year US study, published in the early 1990s, that established a statistical link that poorly controlled diabetes causes complications. Seems obvious, but the evidence was always second-hand.
DCIP
Diabetes Collaborative Improvement Programme
DDA
Disability Discrimination Act
DESMOND
Diabetes Education and Self-Management for Ongoing and Newly Diagnosed. An English and Welsh national education programme for people with Type 2 diabetes.
Diabetes UK
The principal diabetes organisation in the UK. Previously called the British Diabetic Association or BDA.
Disetronic
A Swiss-based company that makes medical devices, including insulin pumps. Was bought by Roche in 2002. Now uses the brand name Accu-Chek.
DKA
Diabetic Ketoacidosis. Ketosis is the presence of ketones in the blood. In diabetes, this can progress to the complex and serious condition of DKA. If untreated, this leads to coma and death. See our article on Beta-Hydroxybutyrate for treating high ketones in the blood.
DLA
Disabled Living Allowance. Some people in Britain are allowed to claim some extra money to help with the cost of running their diabetes. It is noted that often the initial claim is rejected, or a lower allowance given, which is then raised if you complain. Food for thought there...
DM
Diabetes Mellitus
DMer
A person with diabetes
DNS
Diabetes Nurse Specialist. Another name for the Diabetes Specialist Nurse.
DOD
Date of diagnosis
DoH
The UK Department of Health.
DRC
Disability Rights Commission. Their website is www.drc-gb.org
D-TRON
Insulin pump sold by Disetronic. See also Spirit.
DSN
Diabetes Specialist Nurse. This is the UK's equivalent of the US Certified Diabetes Educator.
DHSSPS
Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety
DX
Diagnosis
DXed
Diagnosed
Eli Lilly
A major US drug manufacturer. Makes a wide range of insulins including Humalog.
Endo
Endocrinologist. A diabetes specialist or consultant.
ER
Emergency Room. The American name for what in the UK is called A&E, or Accident and Emergency.
ESRD
End Stage Renal Disease
FBS
Fasting Blood Sugar. Your blood sugar first thing in the morning, before you have eaten anything.
FDA
Food and Drug Administration. An American government department that regulates the use of pharmaceutical products in America.
FWIW
For what it's worth
GADA
Glutamic Acid Decarboxylase. A common anti-islet antibody. See also IA2
GAR
Glucose Absorption Rate
Gestational diabetes
Any degree of impaired glucose regulation which is first recognised during pregnancy. After the birth the problems often disappear. But if they continue it will be classified as either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes.
GDG
Guideline Development Group
GI
Glycaemic Index. A measure of how rapidly the carbohydrate in a particular food actually hits your blood stream. The Americans spell glycaemic glycemic - without the "a".
GP
General Practitioner. Your "general" doctor, not a specialist. In the UK, many people have their diabetes overseen by their GP.
GPP
Good practice point
GPwSI
GP with Special Interests
GRP
Guideline Review Panel
HbA1c, HA1c, HgA1c
Glycosylated haemoglobin, or haemoglobin A1c. Also abbreviated to A1c. See A1c above.
H
Humalog. A rapid acting insulin made by Eli Lilly. Also known as lispro (or lyspro).
HMO
Health Maintenance Organization. A type of US health insurer that focuses on maintaining your health, rather than curing diseases.
HTH
Internet-shorthand for Hope That Helps.
H-TRON
An earlier insulin pump sold by Disetronic. Some people prefer the H-TRON to Disetronic's more recent model, the D-TRON.
HONK
Hyperosmolar non-ketotic syndrome. A coma caused by a very high blood sugar without ketones. Mainly occurs in people with Type 2 diabetes.
Hypo
Hypoglycaemia, hypoglycaemic. Low blood sugar
Hyper
Hyperglycaemia, hyperglycaemic. High blood sugar
I
Insulatard. A cloudy medium acting insulin made by Novo-Nordisk.
IA2
A tyrosine phosphatase-like protein. See also GADA.
ICAS
Independent Complaints Advocacy Service
IDDM
Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus. Now usually called Type 1 diabetes.
IDDT
Insulin Dependent Diabetes Trust. A group established to support the demand for animal insulins.
IFG
Impaired Fasting Glycaemia.
IGT
Impaired Glucose Tolerance.
IM
Intramuscular Injection. An injection into a muscle. Intramuscular injections hurt, but are absorbed faster. Particularly good for glucagon injections when treating a bad hypo.
IM&T
Information Management and Technology
IMHO
In my humble (or honest) opinion
INPUT
INsulin PUmp Therapy. A UK group providing information about pump therapy. Run by John Davis <input@care4free.net>
IoB
Insulin On Board. Insulin doesn't work immediately. There is usually a delay while it's absorbed. It goes slowly through your fat and into your blood. Some pumps will guess for you how much insulin you have already taken, but which has not yet worked. This helps get a more accurate correction bolus. See also correction bolus.
IQ
Intelligence Quotient
ISPAD
International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes
IV
Intravenous Injection. The fastest route into the blood stream.
JDF
Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. Now called the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation
JDRF
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation - new name for Juvenile Diabetes Foundation
KSF
Knowledge and Skills Framework
L
Lente. A cloudy insulin that lasts slightly longer than NPH. Also known as Monotard in the UK.
LADA
Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults
NCB
National Children’s Bureau
LDSAG
Local Diabetes Services Advisory Group
LHA
Local Health Authority.
LHB
Local Health Board
LHSCG
Local Health and Social Care Group
LIT
Local Implementation Team
LOL
Laughing out loud
LTCCGWT
Long-Term Conditions Care Group Workforce Team
LSHTM
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
M or MM
MiniMed. Manufacturer of insulin pumps. MiniMed was taken over by Medtronic in 2002.
MCN
Managed Clinical Network
MDI
Multiple Daily Injections. Three or more injections of insulin through the course of the day.
MDN
Managed Diabetes Network
Medtronic
A US-based company that bought MiniMed in July 2001.
mg/dL
Milligrams per decilitre. A common unit for measuring blood glucose levels. See also mmol/L
MiniMed
A US-based company that makes medical devices, including insulin pumps. MiniMed was bought by Medtronic in July 2001.
mmol/L
Millimoles per litre. A common unit for measuring blood glucose levels. See also mg/dL
MODY
Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young. Similar to Type 2 diabetes, but affecting young people. Doctors are worried as this is becoming more common and they don't understand why.
Myocardial infarction
Posh name for a heart attack.
NCASP
National Clinical Audit Support Programme
NCC-WCH
National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health
NDST
National Diabetes Support Team
NHGB
Net Hepatic Glucose Balance. Calculated as the sum of gluconeogenesis, glycogen breakdown and glycogen synthesis derived from experimental data published in literature.
Nephropathy
Kidney disease.
Neuropathy
Damage to the nerves.
NHS
National Health Service. Healthcare in the UK is delivered free at the point of care. The NHS was set up in 1948.
NLD
Necrobiosis Lipoidica Diabeticorum. Death of the fat cells in the skin of people with diabetes. Comes up in red blotches often lower leg. No real cure, but the use of cosmetics can disguise the problem.
NICE
National Institute for Clinical Excellence. A UK government body set up to examine new clinical methods.
NICE TA
Technology Appraisal published by NICE
Novo-Nordisk
A leading manufacturer of insulin and other pharmaceutical products in Europe.
NPSA
National Patient Safety Agency
NPCC
National Primary Care Collaborative
NPCDT
National Primary Care Development Team
NSF
National Service Framework. In Dec 2001 the National Service Framework for Diabetes: Standards was published by the UK Department of Health suggesting modern standards for diabetes care. A further document Delivery Strategy is expected to follow.
N or NPH
Neutral Protamine Hagedorn. A cloudy medium-acting insulin. Also known as Insulatard or Humulin I in the UK.
NNT
Number needed to treat
OGTT
Oral Glucose Tolerance Test
OR
Odds ratio
Oreos
"America's Favorite Cookie". A serving of three cookies contains 23 g of CHO. You can "Bite them, twist them, lick them". Also available in "Double Stuffed" and "Low Fat".
OTOH
On the other hand...
PAF
Performance Assessment Framework
PALS
Patient Advice and Liaison Services
PASA
NHS Purchasing and Supply Agency
Paradigm
MiniMed's current pump brand in the UK.
PCP
Primary Care Physician (or provider). Your "main doc". May also refer to Preferred Care Provider, if talking about US insurance coverage.
PCT
Primary Care Trust. The local level of the UK's health system.
PGU
Peripheral Glucose Utilization. Represents the grouped uptake of glucose by the CNS, RBC, muscles and adipose tissue.
POM
What an Australian calls an Englishman. No - sorry ;-) Prescription Only Medicine
Postprandial
After a meal. Several hours after eating is when your BG is normally at its higest. See also preprandial.
Preprandial
Just before you eat. This is often the point when your BG is lowest, and at its stablest. See also postprandial.
PVD
Peripheral Vascular Disease. Reduced blood supply to the feet.
POOF
Plenty Of Oral Fluids
Postural hypotension
Feeling faint when standing up quickly.
QALY
Quality-Adjusted Life Year
Quick-Set
An infusion set sold by MiniMed. It has a soft plastic tube that goes straight into the skin. It is said to stick better than MiniMed's SofSet.
QIS
Quality Improvement Scotland
QUIDS
Quality Indicators in Diabetes Services
R
Regular insulin. The common name for the clear soluble insulin. Not to be confused with Humalog, which is not a regular insulin, but a rapid insulin.
Rapid
An infusion set sold by Disetronic. It has a fine steel needle for easy insertion.
RBC
Red Blood Cell
RCT
Randomised controlled (clinical) trial
Retinopathy
Damage to the small blood vessels on the eye's retina, believed to be caused by high BG levels.
Roche
A large healthcare firm that owns Disetronic. The name Disetronic is being replaced by Accu-Chek.
ROFL
Rolling On The Floor Laughing
RR
Relative risk (or risk ratio)
RTG
Renal Threshold of Glucose
Rx
Shorthand for prescription or treatment.
SCIDC
Scottish Care Information Diabetes Collaboration
SD
Standard Deviation
SE
Standard Error
SDS
Scottish Diabetes Survey
SHA
Strategic Health Authority
SIGN
Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network
Silhouette
An infusion set sold by MiniMed. It has a soft plastic tube that goes in at about 45 degrees. Similar to Disetronic's Tender.
SMC
Scottish Medicines Consortium
SO
Significant Other. Spouse or life partner
SofSet
An infusion set sold by MiniMed. It has a soft plastic tube that goes straight into the skin.
Spirit
Insulin pump sold by Disetronic.
St Vincent Declaration
An international declaration calling for progress in the treatment of diabetes.
SubQ
Subcutaneous (tissue)
T1
Type 1 diabetes. The correct name for what has previously been called insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), or juvenile onset diabetes.
T2
Type 2 diabetes. The correct name for what has previously been called non insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), or mature onset diabetes.
TEDDY
The Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young. A US project to investigate the environmental triggers of Type 1 diabetes which turn the body’s immune system on the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas.
Tender
An infusion set sold by Disetronic. It has a soft plastic tube that goes in at about 45 degrees. Similar to MiniMed's Silhouette. Now under the brand name Accu-Chek TenderLink.
U
Ultralente or Ultratard. A cloudy, very long acting insulin.
UKPDS
United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study. This research has provided conclusive evidence that the life threatening complications of Type 2 diabetes can be significantly reduced by appropriate treatment.
UPCI
Unique Patient Client Indentifier
V
Velosulin. A soluble regular insulin that has had chemicals added to prevent insulin crystals forming.
Vanilla day
Nothing directly to do with vanilla ice-cream! This refers to a plain day, with nothing extreme happening (like hypos, exercise or big meals etc), which is a good time to check various aspects of diabetes control. Used a lot by American people...
VBG
Very Big Grin. May also appear as <VBG>
WHO
World Health Organisation.
WMD
Weighted Mean Difference.
YMMV
Your Mileage May Vary. Remember that you may react differently to a particular health care regimen than your neighbour does. Keep your needs and experience in mind when viewing advice on line. Taken from 1970s US car adverts.

Anything missing? Wrong? Anything you'd like added to this page?

Please let us know

Author: John Neale <jneale@webshowcase.net>. John Neale is not a medical professional. He has Type 1 diabetes and uses an insulin pump. The information given here is based on his own personal experience. More about John Neale...

Based on a document by Bob Burnett <bburnett@twcny.rr.com>

Created: Nov 1999; Last updated: Monday 24 July 2006


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