Blood gas tension Blood gas tension Blood gas tension refers to the partial pressure of gases in blood. There are several significant purposes for measuring gas tension; the most common gas tensions measured are oxygen tension (PO), the carbon dioxide tension (PCO) and carbon monoxide tension (PCO). The subscript "x" in each symbol represents the source of the gas being measured; ""a"" meaning arterial, ""A"" being alveolar, ""v"" being venous, ""c"" being capillary. Blood gas tests (such as arterial blood gas tests) measure these partial pressures. PO – Partial pressure of oxygen at sea level (765 mmHg) in arterial blood is between 75
Glycated hemoglobin hemoglobin. As the average amount of plasma glucose increases, the fraction of glycated hemoglobin increases in a predictable way. This serves as an indicator that blood sugar is increasing and that action should be taken. In diabetes mellitus, higher amounts of glycated hemoglobin, indicating poorer control of blood glucose levels, have been associated with cardiovascular disease, nephropathy, neuropathy, and retinopathy. A trial on a group of patients with Type 1 diabetes found that monitoring by caregivers of HbA led to changes in diabetes treatment and improvement of metabolic control compared to monitoring only of blood or urine glucose. However, a