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Type 1 Patient Blood Glucose Image

The JOHO image above is an example of the use of American Image Inc.'s innovative visualization technique. Using JOHO, American Image can make displays from your glucometer output files, and return them to you through e-mail. You can easily see, in one image,  patterns of glucose readings by time of day and over many days. The JOHO image is much easier to interpret than graphs produced in other programs, including those supplied by glucometer vendors.

This image shows 250 glucometer measurements retrieved from a One Touch II meter used by a type 1 diabetic on insulin therapy.  Insulin dosage consisted of   Humalog before each meal, and Ultra Lente before breakfast.

A JOHO image from a type 2 patient is also available.

Image Layout

Each narrow row of cells in the panel represents one day.  The data covers the period from June 1, 1998 through December 5, 1998, as labeled on the left side of the panel.   Each row is divided into five columns, with each column representing a part of the day, as labeled at the bottom of the panel.  The left column is intended for those rare measurements made in the early morning hours.  In this image there are no measurements in this column.  The next three columns show measurements made before breakfast, before lunch, and before supper.  The rightmost column shows measurements (only two here) made at bedtime.

Each colored cell indicates the meter measurement made at that day at that time. The legend at the right indicates the relation between color and the meter measurement (mg/dl). The legend indicates that measurements of under 80 appear blue. Normal measurements (80 - 130) appear green. The white at the top of the legend indicates a measurement of 370 or higher.

The wider top row shows the mean value for each column, in color and numerically.  The number of measurements in each column appears above the panel.

Image Interpretation

The image shows clearly that the patient was fairly consistent about measuring glucose before breakfast, and less consistent before meals.  There are few measurements before bed and in the night. The image shows significant variation in the before breakfast measurements, with a rather high average.  Measurements before the other two meals are lower and more consistent. Prior to any real change in insulin dosage, one recommendation might be to make more regular measurements before bed, and to adjust by taking more insulin or eating a small snack.  This bedtime measurement would also be helpful in determining if the amount of insulin taken before supper is adequate.

Important:  This interpretation is for illustrative purposes only, and has not been supplied by a doctor.  Consult your physician for interpretation of your own blood glucose measurements.

More about JOHO

American Image, Inc.'s JOHO software is also available. Using JOHO displays you can quickly inspect and analyze very large data sets. You can visually evaluate the entire data set prior to performing statistical analysis, and use the information to guide you in making the inevitable assumptions you must make in statistical analysis. In some cases the images themselves can be the end product of the statistical analysis.

The American Image home page shows more examples of JOHO images in a variety of fields.