Preparing for a type 2 diabetes review: what gets checked - blood sugar, feet, eyes, kidneys, weight and medicines - and how to get ready

A type 2 diabetes review is a structured check of how your diabetes is affecting you, and it needs a little preparation. Your team looks at your blood sugar over time, your feet, your eyes, your kidneys, your weight and your medicines. The tests and examinations provide most of the results, and a few come from you. You can prepare on paper or with the symptom diary in Sam, where you note symptoms and sick days per day.

This post explains what a review checks, using UK and US guidance, and how to prepare so nothing is left out. How often you have reviews, and which parts apply to you, is decided with your healthcare team. This is general information, not a substitute for medical care.

What does a type 2 diabetes review check?

In the UK, this is part of routine NHS care and is often called your annual review. Diabetes UK lists nine checks. They are HbA1c, blood fats, kidney function in a blood test, and kidney disease in a urine test. Your blood pressure and your weight and height for BMI are measured. A foot check happens, and your team asks whether you smoke. A diabetic eye check usually happens at a separate appointment.

In the US, the American Diabetes Association's Standards of Care recommend a complete medical evaluation at the first visit and follow-up visits. Its list includes A1c, blood pressure, height, weight and BMI, a urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio, a comprehensive foot examination, and referral to an eye specialist for a dilated eye exam. Follow-up visits are advised at least every 3 to 6 months, individualized, and then at least annually. The CDC lists self-care basics: healthy food, being active, testing blood sugar, taking medicines, managing stress and going to checkups. How often you test depends on your treatment and what your team agrees.

The exact list depends on your team and your treatment, so ask what your review will include and when.

Blood sugar: HbA1c and your own log

HbA1c reflects your average blood sugar over about the last three months. Diabetes UK calls it your average blood sugar for the past three months. It comes from a blood test, not from your meter.

Your own log is context, not a substitute. Your meter shows a moment; HbA1c shows the average. If you test at home, bring the values or the meter to the review. A log is most useful with context. Note the date and time, and whether the reading was before or after a meal. Add a word for anything unusual, like being ill or a missed dose.

Feet, eyes and kidneys

Diabetes can affect blood vessels and nerves, which is why the review checks the parts of the body where damage shows first.

The foot check looks at the feeling in your feet (often with a monofilament), the blood flow to your feet (often checked through your foot pulses) and your skin, and checks for problems such as calluses, deformity or sores. The result places you in a risk group that sets how often your feet are checked (NICE NG19). Diabetes UK says a foot check is part of the annual review; in Scotland it may be every two years if your last check was clear. Wear shoes and socks that are quick to take off.

The eye check is separate and uses photos of the back of your eyes. Diabetes UK calls it a diabetic eye check, not a sight test. It looks for diabetic retinopathy, damage to the blood vessels in the eye, and you may be offered it every two years if your last one was clear. You cannot drive straight after, because the drops may blur you.

The kidney checks use a blood test and a urine test. A urine sample for the test is one of the checks people most often miss, so ask your team how to provide it.

Weight, blood pressure and medicines

Your weight and height are measured to work out your BMI, and your blood pressure is taken. Blood fats (cholesterol) are part of the picture too.

Your medicines should be reviewed as part of it. Diabetes UK says your doctor should check what medications you are taking at your annual review, and it is a good place to raise questions about anything you take.

How to prepare for the review

Ask how your team organises it. In the UK, your GP surgery should contact you for the annual review, and Diabetes UK says to chase it if you hear nothing and to set a reminder each year.

Bring your medicine list and anything you take on top of it. Bring your blood sugar log or meter if you test. Bring any results you have received since the last visit, and two or three written questions. The CDC and the American Diabetes Association both describe an active role in your care and going to checkups.

Two or three written questions save the visit. Ask what your results show, what changed since last time, which checks are still open, and when to come back.

What a health app can and cannot do

Sam is a wellness companion, not a medical device. It does not measure blood sugar, and it does not run your review. Your blood tests and your meter readings belong to you and your team.

What Sam can do is keep the part of the record you own. The symptom diary records symptoms and sick days per day, your medicine list can remind you of scheduled daily doses, and Health Vault holds your eye and lab results so they are not left in three folders. For what Sam holds for this condition, see Sam's overview for type 2 diabetes. The review, the tests and the plan sit with your healthcare team.

Use Sam for the parts of the record you own

You bring the pieces that come from you, via Sam's overview for type 2 diabetes, instead of scrambling on the morning of the review.

• The symptom diary records symptoms and sick days per day, so they are noted as they happen, not recalled later.
• Your medicine list holds everything you take, and scheduled daily doses get a reminder, instead of a paper plan you might lose.
• Copies of your eye check and lab results sit in Health Vault, ready to find.

There is no type 2 diabetes program in Sam, and Sam does not measure blood sugar. The tests and the plan sit with your healthcare team.

Try Sam for free

Sam is a wellness companion, not a medical device. The app does not diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any condition or health state. Always consult qualified professionals for medical decisions.

General information, not legal advice. Laws, deadlines and agency practice change, and your case may differ. Before applications, deadlines and conversations with employers, insurers or agencies, get advice from an adviser or lawyer. Legal state: October 2026.

Related reading

• Living with type 2 diabetes: movement and sleep
• Preparing for a routine condition review
• What your care team records at a review
• Tracking medications across many doctors

Sources

Updated: October 2026

• Diabetes UK: Diabetes health checks (annual review)
• CDC: Living with Diabetes
• American Diabetes Association: Standards of Care in Diabetes-2026, Section 4: Comprehensive Medical Evaluation and Assessment of Comorbidities
• NICE: Diabetic foot problems (NG19)