22 - Diabetic Complications Flashcards
What are the acute and chronic complications of diabetes?
Acute:
- Hypoglycaemia
- DKA
- HHS
Chronic:
Microvascular - retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy
Microvascular - cerebrovascular, peripheral vascular, cardiovascular
How do you assess and treat the following diabetic complications:
- Vascular disease
- Nephropathy
- Retinopathy
Vascular disease: check plasma lipids, check BP, check smoking status, offer statin and aspirin 75 mg
Nephropathy: microalbuminaemia (negative urine proteins but ACR >3) so give ACEi
Retinopathy: anual retinal screening and refer to ophthalmologist if pre-proliferative changes (cotton wool spots, haemorrhages, venous beading)
What is the definition of hypoglycaemia for diabetic hospital inpatients?
Blood glucose less than 4mmol/L
What are some clinical features of hypoglycaemia?
- Coma
- Seizures
How can hypoglycaemia in diabetics be recognised by hospital staff?
What are some risk factors for hypoglycaemia?
What are some causes of inpatient hypoglycaemia and what are the most common?
EXPLAIN
- Exogenous drugs e.g insulin, sulfonylureas
- Pituitary insufficiency
- Liver failure
- Addison’s disease
- Insulinoma
- Non pancreatic neoplasms
What is the general management of hypoglycaemia?
- Quick acting carbohydrate followed by long acting
- Consider cause
How should you categorise hypogylcaemic patients to help with their management?
How do you treat a conscious and orientated patients with hypoglycaemia?
15 - 20g fast acting carbohydrate e.g:
- 5-7 dextrose tablets
- Glucojuice
- 3 to 4 heaped teaspoons of sugar into water
- 150-200ml fruit juice
followed by long acting carbohydrate once BG>4 e.g toast
After you have given a conscious and orientate hypoglycaemic patient fast acting carbohydrate, how should you follow this up?
- Check CBG after 15 minutes
- If not improved repeat step
- If low after 45 minutes then 1mg IM glucagon or 10% 150-200mls glucose over 15 mins
- Document in notes, review CBG closely for next 24-48 hours, hypo education
Which patients with hypoglycaemia won’t respond to IM glucagon?
Cirrhotic liver patients
How do you treat a conscious patient who is able to swallow but uncooperative with hypoglycaemia?
Either
- 1.5 - 2 tubes of glucogel
- 1mg IM Glucagon
Repeat CBG after 15 minutes. Do not use glucagon more than once!!!! After 3 cycles give 150-200mls 10% glucose IV
Give long acting carbohydrate once BM>4
How do you treat an unconscious patient with hypoglycaemia?
- ABCDE
- If on IV insulin stop
- Glucagon IM 1mg
- If not worked after 10 minutes give glucose 10% intravenous infusion 150-200mls
- If insulin dose due to not omit, if was on IV insulin then check CBG every 15 mins until BM>3.5 then restart insulin
How do you treat a NBM patient with hypoglycaemia?
Once BG over 4 then continue on 10% dextrose 100mls/hr until no longer NBM
What is the definition of ketoacidosis including the diagnostic criteria?
- Ketonaemia
- Hyperglycaemia (reduced peripheral uptake due to insulin deficiency)
- Acidosis
What is the pathophysiology of ketoacidosis?
Lack of insulin causes switch to lipolysis for energy source as cannot use glucose. This leads to free fatty acid metabolism and formation of ketones 3-betahydroxybutate, acetone and acetoacetic acid
In early stages ketones are buffered, when no longer buffered they appear in urine
Induces nausea and vomiting
Hyperglycaemia, osmotic diuresis, serum hyperosmolality and metabolic acidosis lead to electrolyte disturbance
What are the key issues in ketoacidosis?
- Hyperglycaemia
- Acidosis
- Dehydration due to vomiting and osmotic diuresis
- Sodium and Potassium loss due to osmotic diuresis
- Cerebral oedema
- Electrolyte disturbances, especially hypoK
How do you test for ketoacidosis?
- 3-B- Hydroxybutyric acid using blood ketone meter (more sensitive)
- Acetoacetic acid using ketostix so urine ketones
How does DKA present?
Usually type 1 diabetic
N+V
Abdominal pain
Ketone breath
High respiratory rate
Confusion
Hypotension
Polyuria
Kussmaul breathing
Why may K appear high during DKA, even though there is a total body loss of potassium?
Shift of potassium out of the cells due to acidosis and lack of insulin
Why is there dehydration in DKA?
- Vomiting
- Osmotic diuresis
What are some other types of diabetes that can have DKA apart from type 1?
- Type 2 on SGLT2i
- LADA (Anti-GAD antibody)
- Ketosis Prone Diabetes (Non-Caucasian)(Temporary diabetes)
What are some precipitating factors for a DKA?
- Poor compliance to insulin
- Infection
- First presentation of type 1
- MI
- Wrong prescription of insulin
What investigations should you do if you suspect DKA?
- Blood or urine ketones
- Capillary blood glucose
- Venous plasma glucose
- VBG for lactate
- U+Es
- FBC
- Blood culture
- ECG and cardiac monitoring
- CXR
- Pulse oximetry
- Urine dip/MSU
How do you assess the severity of DKA and what is the importance of knowing the severity?
If one of the following then need treatment on HDU
What are the principles of management in DKA?
- Fluid administration to restore circulatory volume
- Fixed rate IV insulin after fluids to reverse ketosis. Add 10% IV glucose if CBG falls below 14
- Monitor and replace potassium
These are done to clear ketones and correct metabolic disturbances
What are some recent changes in DKA investigations and management that are important to remember?
- Measure blood ketones not urinary
- Use fixed rate insulin not variable rate
- Use VBG not ABG to look at pH and lactate
- Continue long acting basal insulin as normal
- Bolus dose of insulin at presentation
- 10% dextrose when BM<14
What are some factors of poor prognosis in DKA and what causes mortality?
- Age and confusion
- Mortality: precipitating illness, hypoK, aspiration, cerebral oedema
What is a fixed rate insulin infusion and why is it used in DKA?
- 0.1 units/kg/hr of Humulin S or Actrapid given IV up to 15 units (150kg)
- If taking long acting basal insulin normally then continue this too
- Use large bore cannula
- This helps to suppress ketoacidosis and hyperglycaemia
What are the metabolic treatment targets once DKA treatment has been started?
- Reduce blood ketones by 0.5/hr
- Increase venous bicarb by 3/hr
- Maintain K between 4 and 5.5
- Give 10% dextrose when blood glucose falls below 14
If any of these targets not achieved then up the fixed rate insulin
How much fluid and potassium replacement is given to a patient with DKA?
- 6L of fluid in 24 hours
- K depends on blood levels
What are the monitoring parameters in DKA ?
- Bicarbonate
- Venous pH
- Blood glucose
- Blood ketones
Overall what is the management of DKA in the first 60 minutes?