| Autoimmune Diseases:
Diabetes |
 Hello,
I am Janey Willis, ISN
Guide to Diabetes. Type 1 Diabetes is an autoimmune disease, and Type
2 Diabetes is caused by risk factors such as lifestyle, ethnicity, age,
and pregnancy. The majority of people with diabetes are Type 2. This page
has not yet been medically edited. Just because something is listed here
does not mean an individual patient will ever experience it. See Disclaimer. |
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| Symptoms
of Diabetes |
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| Overview of Diabetes
Symptoms |
| Diabetes may affect the heart,
lungs, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract, bone, nervous system,
thyroid gland, eyes, and skin. About 25% of diabetics also
have symptoms of depression. |
| Signs and Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes. The onset of symptoms
often appear after a flu-like illness and gradually intensify
over the course of a few weeks. Symptoms include frequent
urination, quick weight loss despite extreme hunger, blurred
vision and extreme fatigue. MayoClinic. |
| Type
1 Diabetes Complications. The more common complications
associated with Type 1 diabetes are eyes, heart, feet, skin,
kidney, neuropahty, gastrointestinal and depression. American
Diabetes Association. |
| The 30-year natural history of type 1 diabetes complications. Researchers discovered that while cases of premature death and a few other complications have declined, rates of other serious diabetes-related disorders such as heart and eye disease have not improved over the past 25 to 30 years. News-Medical.Net 05/03/06. |
| Eye Complications |
| Glaucoma, cataracts, and retinopathy
are the more frequent eye complications with diabetes. |
| Eye
Complications. You may have heard that diabetes causes
eye problems and may lead to blindness. People with diabetes
do have a higher risk of blindness than people without diabetes.
But most people who have diabetes have nothing more than
minor eye disorders. American Diabetes Association. |
| Diabetes
Reduces Basal Retinal Insulin Receptor Signaling. These
results demonstrate that diabetes progressively impairs the
constitutive retinal insulin receptor signaling pathway through
Akt and suggests that loss of this survival pathway may contribute
to the initial stages of diabetic retinopathy. Diabetes
55:1148-1156, 2006. |
| Gastrointestinal |
| Irritable Bowel Syndrome & Diabetes. Having both diabetes and
irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is frustrating. Here's help
controlling both. American Diabetes Association. (Also
see: IBS) |
| Heart Disease |
| Effect of Lowering LDL Cholesterol Substantially Below Currently Recommended Levels in Patients With Coronary Heart Disease and Diabetes. Patients with clinically evident coronary heart disease and diabetes, intensive therapy with atorvastatin 80 mg significantly reduced the rate of major cardiovascular events by 25% compared with atorvastatin 10 mg. Diabetes Care 29:1220-1226, 2006. |
| Effect
Of Diabetes On Heart May Differ By Ethnicity, Study Finds. Diabetes
strongly increases the risk of heart failure in all ethnic
groups, but early effects of diabetes on the heart may differ
depending on whether the subjects are white, African-American,
Hispanic or Chinese. Medical News Today 03/12/06. |
| Prehypertension,
Diabetes, and Cardiovascular Disease Risk in a Population-Based
Sample. A total of 2629 Strong Heart Study participants
free from hypertension and cardiovascular disease at baseline
examination were followed for 12 years to observe incident
cardiovascular disease. Approximately 42% of the 2629 participants
had diabetes. American Heart Association 01/30/06. |
| Nerve Damage |
| Prevent
Diabetes Problems: Keep Your Nervous System Healthy. Research
has shown that people who kept their blood glucose close
to normal were able to lower their risk of nerve damage. National
Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. |
| Pulmonary Complications |
| Lung
Dysfunction in Diabetes. Clear decrements in lung function
have been reported in patients with diabetes over the past
2 decades. However, at the present time, there are no reports
of functional limitations of activities of daily living ascribable
to pulmonary disease in patients with diabetes. Diabetes
Care 26:1915-1918, 2003. |
| Skeletal Complications |
| Middle-Aged
Premenopausal Women With Type 1 Diabetes Have Lower Bone
Mineral Density and Calcaneal Quantitative Ultrasound Than
Nondiabetic Women. Lower BMD in premenopausal women with
type 1 diabetes may substantially increase their risk of
developing osteoporosis after menopause. Type 1 diabetic
women should be targeted for osteoporosis screening and possible
fracture prevention as they transition through menopause.PubMed
29 Feb 2006. |
| Elevated
Hip Fracture Risk in Type 1 Diabetic Patients. Both male
and female type 1 diabetic patients are at increased risk
for hip fracture. Although optimal preventive measures still
need to be defined, the co-occurrence with other diabetes
complications suggests that tighter metabolic control might
reduce the risk. Diabetes Care 28:2850-2855, 2005. |
| Skin Complications |
| Diabetes:
Skin Problems. For people with diabetes, having too much
glucose (sugar) in their blood for a long time can cause
serious complications, including skin problems. WebMD. |
| Prediction of Diabetic Foot Ulcer Occurrence Using Commonly Available Clinical Information. Readily available clinical information has predictive power for the development of diabetic foot ulcer and may help in accurately targeting persons at high risk. Diabetes Care 29:1202-1207, 2006. |
| Risk Factors for Foot Infections in Individuals With Diabetes. Foot infections occur relatively frequently in individuals with diabetes, almost always follow trauma, and dramatically increase the risk of hospitalization and amputation. Diabetes Care 29:1288-1293, 2006. |
| Thyroid Complications |
| Association
Between Autoimmune Thyroid Dysfunction And Type 1 Diabetes
Confirmed. A longitudinal study has confirmed the association
between autoimmune thyroid dysfunction and type 1 diabetes,
suggesting a need for regular screening. Doctors' Guide
Channel. 04/08/03. (Also see: Thyroid
Disease) |
