Diabetic Diet & Medication Instructions

Outpatient Testing Instructions

It is important to keep your blood glucose controlled when you are having an outpatient procedure. The following directions will guide you in managing your diabetes medications before and after your test or procedure. 

The evening before your test or procedure 

  1. Continue usual diabetes medication until midnight. (If on Lantus insulin at night, see exceptions below under #6).
  2. Follow all directions your doctor gives you for test preparation. If a clear liquid diet has been prescribed, follow the diet below. It is OK to take liquids containing sugar as listen in the sample diet.

SAMPLE DIET:   May substitute equivalent clear liquids

8 oz. Diet Soft Drink

8 oz. Regular Jell-O (no red or purple flavors)

1 Regular Popsicle (no red or purple flavors)

8 oz. Apple Juice

Broth

**The more you can drink, the better the prep will work. The liquids help to cleanse the colon.

Those liquids should be diet or calorie free.

  1. Nothing to eat or drink after midnight except for #3 below and your morning dose of laxative if ordered by your doctor.

The morning of the test or procedure 

  1. Nothing to eat or drink.
  2. Check blood sugar first thing this morning (and at 12 noon if you are not at the hospital) and write down the results. Bring these results and your blood sugar log book with you to the hospital.
  3. If your blood sugar is less than 60, take one of the following before your arrival at hospital: 3 glucose tablets or 4 oz. Juice (prefer clear juice such as apple or white grape only. NO Orange Juice.)
  4. If blood glucose is equal or greater than 250 call your doctor
  5. DO NOT TAKE your diabetes pill this morning.
  6. If you take Insulin:
    1. NPH, Lente, Ultra Lente: Take 1/2 your morning dose the day of the procedure.
    2. 70/30, 75/25, 50/50: Take 1/3 your morning dose the day of the procedure.
    3. Take NO short acting insulin: Novolog, Humalog, Regular

Example 1: Your usual morning dose is 15 units NPH and 8 units Regular, you would take 7 units NPH and NO regular the morning of your procedure.

Example 2: Your usual morning dose is 27 units of 70/30 insulin, you would take 9 units of 70/30 the morning of your procedure.

Lantus Insulin:

  1. If you take Lantus insulin at night and your procedure is scheduled early in the morning, take your usual night time dose, but no morning insulin.
  2. If you take Lantus insulin at night and your procedure is scheduled late morning or early afternoon, take 2/3 of your evening dose and no morning insulin. 

When you arrive at the Summit Procedure Lab:  

  1. Check in for your test or procedure as directed by your doctor.
  2. Tell the nurse:
    1. You have diabetes
    2. What your blood sugar was this morning
    3. If you take insulin, how much insulin you took this morning

After the procedure

  1. Go back to your usual meal plan
  2. Take your diabetes pill
  3. Resume your usual insulin dose at the next scheduled time
  4. If your blood glucose is higher than 250, call the doctor who treats your diabetes.

If you have any questions about these instructions for your diabetes management, call the Summit Endoscopy Center at 678-817-6505