Prediabetes treatment in Austin

Prediabetes is your body's early warning, and it's the best time to turn things around. Thrive Medical builds a real plan to bring your blood sugar back to normal: weight loss support, metformin, GLP-1 medicines when they fit, and body composition scans that show you exactly what's changing. Most insurance accepted.

See us in North Austin, Round Rock, Leander, Pflugerville or Kyle, or by video from anywhere in Texas.

Prediabetes is common, and reversible

1 in 3 adults

About 1 in 3 American adults has prediabetes.

8 in 10 don't know

Most people with prediabetes have no symptoms and have never been told.

58% lower risk

Losing 5 to 7% of your body weight cut the risk of type 2 diabetes by more than half in a landmark national study.

Do you have prediabetes?

A simple blood test tells you. You're at higher risk if you're over 35, carry extra weight around your middle, have a parent or sibling with diabetes, had diabetes during pregnancy, have PCOS, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, or aren't very active. These are the ranges for prediabetes:

A1C

5.7% to 6.4%
Your average blood sugar over the past 3 months.

Fasting glucose

100 to 125 mg/dL
Your blood sugar after not eating overnight.

Glucose tolerance test

140 to 199 mg/dL
Your blood sugar 2 hours after a sweet drink.

Your prediabetes treatment plan

There's no one-size-fits-all fix. We combine the tools that fit your health, goals and budget.

Weight loss & lifestyle

The foundation. Losing even 5 to 7% of your weight and moving 150 minutes a week can bring blood sugar back to normal. We give you a realistic plan, not a lecture.

Metformin

A safe, inexpensive generic pill that's been used for decades. It can help prevent diabetes, especially if you're under 60, have a BMI of 35 or higher, or had diabetes during pregnancy.

GLP-1 medicines

Medicines like semaglutide and tirzepatide help you feel full sooner and lower blood sugar. Brand-name options at your pharmacy, or compounded semaglutide shipped to your door.

Everything that travels with it

Prediabetes rarely comes alone. We also check and treat blood pressure, cholesterol, fatty liver and sleep apnea.

GLP-1 medicines for prediabetes

In large studies, most people with prediabetes who took a GLP-1 medicine for weight loss returned to normal blood sugar. Here's what you should know.

The straight facts

  • GLP-1 medicines aren't FDA-approved to treat prediabetes itself, so using them for that reason is off-label. Doctors prescribe medicines off-label when the evidence supports it.
  • Wegovy® and Zepbound® are FDA-approved for weight management in adults with a BMI of 30 or higher, or 27 or higher with a weight-related health condition.
  • Insurance coverage varies a lot. We'll check your plan and walk you through the costs before you start.

Two ways to get it

  • Brand name: Wegovy®, Zepbound® and others, filled at your pharmacy and billed to your insurance when your plan covers it.
  • Compounded semaglutide: prepared for you by a licensed compounding pharmacy and shipped right to your home. Compounded medicines aren't FDA-approved, and they aren't reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness or quality. We'll go over the pros and cons with you.

Who should not take them

GLP-1 medicines aren't safe for everyone. They're not for you if you:

  • Have a personal or family history of medullary thyroid cancer or MEN2
  • Are pregnant, breastfeeding or trying to conceive
  • Have had pancreatitis
  • Have certain stomach or gallbladder problems (we'll review these with you)

Nerd out on your body composition

The number on a bathroom scale doesn't tell the whole story. The seca® medical body composition analyzer at our North Austin clinic shows what your weight is made of in under a minute, so we can protect your muscle while you lose fat. Get scanned at each check-in to watch your progress.

Fat mass

How many pounds of your weight are fat, and how that changes over time.

Muscle mass

Your skeletal muscle, so we can make sure you're losing fat, not muscle.

Visceral fat

The deep belly fat around your organs most closely tied to insulin resistance.

Body water

Hydration matters, especially on GLP-1 medicines.

Phase angle

A marker of cell health and fitness that we can track as you get stronger.

Why patients choose Thrive

More than a GLP-1 prescription

Feature
Online GLP-1 apps
Thrive Medical
Lab-confirmed diagnosis and A1C tracking
✕
✓
Body composition scans to protect your muscle
✕
✓
Metformin and other options, not just one medicine
✕
✓
Visits billed to your insurance
✕
✓
In-person care at 5 Austin-area clinics
✕
✓
Blood pressure, cholesterol and sleep apnea treated too
✕
✓

How it works

Get tested

An A1C and fasting labs at one of our clinics, or bring recent results.

Get scanned

A quick body composition scan at our North Austin clinic gives us your starting point.

Build your plan

Lifestyle changes, medicine when it fits, and treatment for anything else we find.

Track your progress

Regular check-ins, scans and an A1C recheck every 3 to 6 months until you're back in the normal range.

How paying works

No membership and no subscription. You pay for your visits and medication, and that's it.

Your visits and labs

Billed to your insurance like any doctor's visit, or $125 per visit if you prefer to self-pay. Diabetes screening labs are usually covered.

Metformin

A low-cost generic at most pharmacies.

GLP-1 medicines

Brand-name coverage depends on your plan, and we'll check your benefits. Compounded semaglutide is self-pay at [$XX] a month, shipped to your door.

    We treat patients 18yo and older.

  • State ID
  • Insurance card (if you have insurance)
  • Method of Payment
  • Previous records or prescription bottles are helpful for new visits

For new patients please make sure to complete your new patient paperwork online prior to your appointment. If you are unable to do so, please arrive 15 minutes early to allow you time to fill out all required paperwork.

If you are a new patient please arrive 15 minutes prior to your scheduled appointment start time. This will allow you time to complete the paperwork and check in process in a timely manner.

All established patients should arrive 10 minutes prior to the scheduled appointment start time. This will allow adequate time to complete the check-in and payment process.

We make every effort to run on schedule and respect our patient’s time and this is largely determined by everyone making an effort to arrive early to their appointments.

Any patient who shows up more than 15 minutes past their alloted time is subject to rescheduling the visit.

Please remember that scheduling an appointment involves reservation of your provider’s time specifically for you. If you fail to cancel or change an appointment 24 hours in advance, we cannot provide services for other patients who would like to be seen, often times, same day for urgent matters.

Patients who provide late cancellation or fail to show up for 2 or more appointments at any time during the course of treatment will be discharged from the practice. This is because it is difficult to provide quality care to patients who consistently miss and/or cancel their appointments.

Catch it now. Turn it around for good.

Prediabetes care in North Austin, Round Rock, Leander, Pflugerville and Kyle, plus virtual visits across Texas.

Wegovy® is a registered trademark of Novo Nordisk A/S. Zepbound® is a registered trademark of Eli Lilly and Company. seca® is a registered trademark of seca gmbh & co. kg. Thrive Medical is not affiliated with these companies.

Schedule an appointment today!