Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a disease that affects several organs and has the potential to cause long-term complications that affect the quality of life of people who suffer from it.
However, there are also short-term (acute) complications that, if not treated promptly, can be life-threatening. One of those complications is diabetic ketoacidosis, which is commonly known as “diabetic coma.”
What is diabetic ketoacidosis?
Diabetic ketoacidosis is a complication in which the functioning of the metabolism is modified.
Usually characterized by very high blood glucose levels (or “hyperglycemia”), which are usually greater than 250 mg / dl and that are due to an almost absolute deficiency of insulin, as in people with type 1 diabetes mellitus or in people with diabetes Long-lasting type 2 mellitus, due to the lack of administration of medications and even acute diseases such as respiratory or intestinal infections.
Not being able to take advantage of glucose found in the blood, due to the lack of insulin, the body begins to produce more glucose, since by not entering the cells it detects that there is none and begins to use the fat that is stored in the body.
When using this fat substances are produced that are known as ketone bodies, which are toxic to our body when found in large quantities, since they alter the pH of the blood making it more acidic and damaging organs such as the kidney or the brain.
What symptoms occur in diabetic ketoacidosis?
The most common symptoms are that people are increasingly thirsty for dehydration, but at the same time makes you want to urinate all the time.
Patients go so Following to urinate that they can even lose up to 6 liters of water a day in the form of urine. There may also be weakness, fatigue, nausea, loss of appetite and as glucose levels are higher, the state of consciousness can be increasingly altered, that is, the “lucidity” of people, they are less attentive, they are confused until the point of power to lose this state of consciousness.
Go to an emergency center in case of diabetic ketoacidosis
It is very important to go to the emergency department for the attention and timely management of people who have these symptoms, since the amount of fluids they lose by Urinating so often cannot always be replaced by just drinking water but requires intravenous administration of fluids.
Likewise, it is necessary to administer insulin to control glucose levels, reverse the change in metabolism and help it return to a normal state.
Near to 16 % of deaths that occur in people with type 2 diabetes mellitus are caused by this complication. We must be attentive to the presence of symptoms that may occur, but we must also prevent these complications.
Adherence to treatment and go to follow-up medical check-ups are recommended. in case of presenting any acute illness.
