1,5-Anhydroglucitol (1.5-AG) is known to closely reflect diabetic control within several days. The possibility of predicting long-term glycemic control after an educational hospitalization of type II diabetic patients was investigated by examining the relationship between changes in serum 1,5-AG levels after a short-term trial home stay following an educational program and long-term changes in glycosylated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels after discharge. After 22 patients with type II diabetes had successfully completed the educational hospitalization program, they returned as outpatients for 5 nights in a row. Changes in serum 1,5-AG levels were determined during this period. The HbA1c levels were then determined over a period of 3 months after discharge, and the relationship between changes in 1,5-AG and HbA1c levels was examined. Changes in serum 1,5-AG levels during the 5-day trial home stay and the changes in HbA1c levels during the 3 months after discharge from the hospital were found to be significantly correlated (r = 0.70, P < 0.01). A comparison of the decreased group, which exhibited a decrease in 1.5-AG levels of 5.0 mumol/l or more during the trial home stay, and the unchanged group, revealed that increases in body mass index 3 months after discharge were significantly higher in the decreased group (1.2 +/- 0.4%) than in the unchanged group (0.2 +/- 0.5%) (P < 0.05). Determination of serum 1,5-AG levels of patients with type II diabetes before and after a trial home stay following educational hospitalization was found to be useful in identifying patients at high risk of recurrence of poor glycemic control in the future.