Complications Of Diabetes

Thanks to the efforts of two Canadian doctors, Frederick Banting and Charles Best, insulin was discovered and this dramatically changed the lives of millions diabetics, especially those suffering from insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), the more severe form of the disease. No longer was death inevitable and many diabetic children reached adult life.

Still, their problems were not over since diabetes has many complications that can cripple – if not kill – the patient unless it is properly managed. Both IDDM and non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) have short and long term risks. Untreated, the disease affect and damage blood vessels in the brain, the head, the eyes, the legs and the kidneys.

One acute complication of IDDM is ketoacidosis which often occurs when the diabetic fails to receive insulin injections or is under stress from illness or injury. As blood sugar levels rise, chemical compounds called ketones form, making the blood more acidic.

This results in increased urination and thirst, weakness and drowsiness, vomiting, diarrhea, and a sweet smelling breath as acetone is being expelled from the lungs. As the condition worsens, breathing becomes rapid and the patient may eventually lose consciousness.

"These symptoms demand immediate treatment because death can result (government statistics suggest that ketoacidosis is the cause of about one in 10 deaths in diabetics). Ketoacidosis is most likely in the undiagnosed diabetic or in a person whose diabetes is not well-controlled,” said Dr. David E. Larson, editor-in chief of the Mayo Clinic Family Health Book.

“However, any diabetic is subject to ketoacidosis under such circumstances as accidental injury, infection, or loss of large quantities of fluid through vomiting or diarrhea. In these situations, it is important for the diabetic to monitor closely the glucose concentrations in the blood and urine and the ketone concentration in the urine," Larson added.

The long-term effects of diabetes develop slowly and may have no symptoms. These include hypertension, coronary artery disease, and atherosclerosis (the formation of fatty deposits in the arteries that reduce the flow of blood to vital organs) all of which make a person susceptible to stroke, heart attack, and gangrene of the feet.

These are caused by the deterioration of nerves and large blood vessels. If the small blood vessels are involved, blurred vision and other eye problems may occur. Kidney disease is another problem.

"Approximately half of all diabetics may experience eye problems after having the disorder for 10 years, and such problems are almost universal in those who have had diabetes 30 or more years. Diabetic retinopathy is the most common such problem, although cataracts and glaucoma are somewhat more likely in the diabetic than in the non-diabetic" Larson revealed.

"Eye impairment is one of the vascular complications that diabetics fear most. The disease is a major cause of blindness in the world even though there are a few diabetic patients who completely lose their sight. It also produces reduced skin sensitivity that may lead to severe ulcerations in the limbs and eventually bring about another very severe complication: gangrene leading to amputation,’ added the editors of World Health, a publication of the World Health Organization (WHO). (Next: Quack cures for diabetes.)

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