Home › Biomarkers › QUICKI
When researchers developed QUICKI, they tested the index on, among others, 15 people with a disorder of blood sugar regulation. QUICKI is a measure of how sensitive your body is to insulin, calculated from a fasting blood sample.[1]
On this page you can read what QUICKI is, what the guidelines say about a value that is too low or too high, what affects your value and which values are best to look at alongside it.
Also known as: quantitative insulin sensitivity check index, quantitative insulin sensitivity index. At the lab: n/a.
QUICKI stands for quantitative insulin sensitivity check index. It is not a substance in your blood but a calculation. Your fasting insulin and your fasting glucose each go through a logarithm. Then you divide one by the sum of the two.[1]
The researchers found that these very fasting values, measured in a stable state, hold important information about how sensitive your body is to insulin.[1]
The gold standard is the glucose clamp. That method and minimal model analysis are hard to carry out in large studies. So the researchers looked for a simple and accurate method.[1]
Insulin resistance plays an important role in how a condition affecting blood sugar regulation develops. It is also linked to significant overweight and other risk factors for the heart and blood vessels.[1]
In the study, QUICKI correlated more strongly with the glucose clamp (r = 0.78) than minimal model analysis did (r = 0.57).[1]
The researchers checked this in a fully independent group from another institute: 21 people with significant overweight and 14 people without. There too, they saw a similar relationship.[1]
| As the study puts it | What it can point to | Who it is for |
|---|---|---|
| QUICKI, from fasting insulin and fasting glucose[1] | A measure of insulin sensitivity | People with and without significant overweight, and people with a condition affecting blood sugar regulation |
| Insulin resistance[1] | Plays an important role in a condition affecting blood sugar regulation and is linked to significant overweight and other risk factors for the heart and blood vessels | As the study describes it in general terms |
| Cut-off value[1] | The study gives no cut-off for a QUICKI that is too low or too high | No group named |
Source: Katz and colleagues, the study that developed QUICKI, in people with and without significant overweight and people with a condition affecting blood sugar regulation. The study gives no cut-off values.[1]
The study gives no cut-off above which QUICKI is too high. It describes QUICKI as an index of insulin sensitivity from a fasting blood draw that may be useful for clinical research.[1]
BioProfile is working on its own zones for each value, from risk to optimal. A doctor reviews those zones before they appear in your result.
QUICKI is calculated from your fasting insulin. If that value changes, your QUICKI changes with it.[1]
The second value in the calculation is your fasting glucose. So that also helps determine how your QUICKI turns out.[1]
The index assumes values taken in a stable, fasting state. That is why QUICKI comes from a fasting blood draw.[1]
QUICKI is included in BioProfile 121 and 150.[2]
The BioProfile editorial team wrote this page on 31 October 2026 from the sources below, which we read on 31 October 2026. Every number on this page appears in one of those sources, with the number of that source next to it. An expert will still review this page; after that review, the expert's name and the date of the review will appear at the top. This page explains and does not diagnose. Discuss an unusual value with your GP.
