Diabetes Flashcards
What is diabetes?
- A medical condition with high blood glucose levels
- Diabetic people also often have high BP and high cholesterol levels.
- a condition in which the blood glucose level drifts up: chronic hyperglycaemia
Where are the breakdown products of food and drink refined to glucose?
In the Liver
Where is ‘fuel’ stored?
In the liver and muscles as glucose and in fat cells.
Using the analogy of a car, what are the issues with to little or too much fuel?
To little - stalling
Too much - uneven engine performance
What is a normal blood glucose level?
5 mmol/l
Glucose is released from where in response to insulin?
The liver
Glucose is taken up to where in response to insulin?
Muscle tissue
What are the signs are symptoms of diabetes?
- Symptoms: thirst, polyuria, weight loss, tiredness
- Signs: dry mouth, weight loss, glycosuria, hyperglycaemia
How common is diabetes?
- Leeds 4% population
- Rising fast
- Associated with the rise in obesity and a reduction in physical activity
- High prevalence in certain ethnic groups: Asians, Afro-Caribbeans
How is diabetes diagnosed?
- Typical symptoms and high RANDOM blood glucose
- Fasting blood glucose >7mmol/l
- 75g OGTT
- HbA1c; 48 mmol/mol (6.5%)
What is the oral glucose tolerance test?
- Fasting, then 75g oral glucose load
- Blood glucose: fasting and at intervals
- Fasting: normal 7mmol/l
- 2-hour post-glucose load: diabetic >11 mmol/l
What is ‘borderline’ diabetes?
- Impaired fasting glucose: 6-7mmol/l
- Impaired glucose tolerance: two-hour glucose levels of 7.8 -11.0mmol/l, 140 to 199mg/dl on the 75-g oral GTT
What investigations are neccessary in diabetes?
- HbA1c
- Renal function
- Liver function
- Lipids
- Thyroid function
What are the features of type 1 diabetes?
- Autoimmune destruction of the insulin producing islet beta cells
- Insulin deficient: insulin dependent
- Usually young, but can be ANY age.
What autoantibodies may be present in TiDM?
- ICA
- IA2
- GAD
