Diabetes & The Body

How Diabetes can affect your organs?

It is well known fact that problems associated with diabetes are wide-ranging and may affect many different organ systems. The primary complications, which occur most commonly in Type 1 diabetes, may appear relatively rapidly and are directly related to the level of blood glucose.

However, long-term complications may not become evident for several years or even decades after the onset of diabetes. A number of recent studies indicate that secondary complications often may be minimized or even prevented by maintaining normal blood glucose, nevertheless there are enough exceptions that make diabetic complications highly unpredictable.

It is to be kept in mind that not all people with diabetes develop secondary complications. Further, in some people the type and severity of problems seem unrelated to either the duration of the diabetes or the degree of control.

In any case it is worthwhile for diabetics to be aware of how things can go and affect different organs in various ways.

Blood vessel blockage to the brain

A blockage of an artery in the brain or leading to it can lead to a stroke or cerebrovascular accident. This may result in loss of speech, paralysis on one side of the body. loss of vision, coma or confusion.

This situation needs urgent medical attention because anti-clotting treatment or surgery to clean out the arteries in the neck could prevent a subsequent stroke.

A diabetic person who has had a stroke or who is under such distress can return to an active life through rehabilitation, including physiotherapy and speech therapy.

Effect on eyes

Diabetes can damage very small blood vessels on the back of the eye medically known as - diabetic retinopathy. The sad part of it is that, all diabetics are at a risk of this happening to them, regardless of the type of diabetes, age, or even the control over the blood glucose levels a person has. This condition can lead to loss of vision or even result in blindness.

Stages in which diabetic retinopathy affects vision

1. In the beginning you have normal eyesight.
2. Then you may feel that your vision is blurred, distorted or patchy and find that it can't be corrected with glasses prescribed by your eye doctor.
3. You may have problems with balance, reading, watching television and recognizing people.
4. You get irritated when you look at a brightly illuminated object.
5. You may find it difficult to see at night.

Other complications of the eye in people with diabetes include cataract and Glaucoma. A cataract is cloudiness in the lens of the eye and it leads to vision loss. Cataracts are more common in people with diabetes than the rest of the population.

Glaucoma is a condition where increased pressure within the eye causes damage to the optic nerve and so impairs vision or causes blindness.

It is therefore advised that everyone who has diabetes should have their eyes checked regularly, when diabetes is first diagnosed, and then at least every 2 years after that.

If it is found that the vision has been affected, seeking immediate treatment helps, so that it does not get worse. Further, control of blood-glucose levels and making sure that ones’ diet is low in fat also helps.

However, if damage to the retina has already occurred, laser treatment is supposed to be effective in preventing loss of vision. In case of cataract, surgical removal of the lens of the eye that is replaced with a synthetic lens implant is a successful way of treatment.

The risk to heart

Persons with diabetes are often unaware that they may have narrowed blood vessels in the heart until they block completely, causing a heart attack.

The usual symptom of a heart attack is a heavy, pressing pain across the front of the chest, sometimes going into the neck or down the left arm. Other symptoms include sweating, breathlessness, nausea, vomiting and loss of consciousness. In people with diabetes who have nerve damage, chest pain associated with a heart attack can be absent.

As this is a medical emergency, medical help is to be sought immediately if chest pain does not disappear completely within 3 to 5 minutes.

Blocked or diseased heart arteries are treated accordingly. Provided the amount of heart muscle affected is not large, healing usually takes place and the person can return to normal activity.

Effect on kidneys

It is seen that people with diabetes have a higher chance of developing infections of the vagina, bladder and kidneys than people without diabetes.

If the nerves to the bladder have been damaged by diabetes, the bladder may not empty completely when passing urine, leaving some urine inside the bladder where germs may multiply.

Symptoms of bladder and kidney infections include the following.

1. Passing of small amounts of urine at frequent intervals, day and night.
2. A burning discomfort or pain when passing urine.
3. Backache is also an occasional symptom of kidney infection.

Infections of the bladder and kidney usually occur together. Antibiotics taken by mouth usually treat infections effectively.

Prompt treatment of bladder and kidney infections is important as these infections, if allowed to continue, may result in chronic kidney damage.

Diabetic kidney damage is usually due to changes in small blood vessels leading to the filtering system of the kidney or to the smaller blood vessels within the filtering system itself. Detection of early kidney damage, however, is possible by testing the rate at which the kidneys are leaking a protein called albumin into the urine. The urine is tested with a special test strip in the laboratory.

If kidney damage is detected, high blood pressure medications called ACE inhibitors help protect the kidneys from further diabetic kidney damage.

The Foot edge

Persistent high blood glucose levels are associated with foot problems. The foot maintenance areas that needs to be looked into in case of diabetics is for Nerve damage, Blood vessel damage, Foot shape and Self-care.

Therefore, it is important to keep blood glucose levels consistently within the normal range as this alone helps prevent many of the complications of diabetes, including foot problems.

Nerve damage can cause numbness, coldness in the legs and a burning sensation in the legs and feet, especially in the night.

As a result of this there is a loss of sensation in the feet that may cause accidental damage because the person cannot feel any pain. This can further develop into ulcers on the bottom of the feet. The situation may turn serious and may require amputation of the feet if not treated appropriately from the earliest time of infection, ulceration or the slightest discharge in the feet or toes.

Diabetics are therefore advised to seek urgent medical advice for even the mildest looking foot infection.

Nerve damage in diabetics is detected by testing for different types of sensation in the feet and legs and by testing the knee and ankle reflexes. They are also advised to examine their feet at least every second or third day.

If nerve damage in the feet is detected, diabetics are advised to wear properly fitted shoes that rub neither feet nor toes and to avoid walking barefooted. Diabetics further need to regularly use a moisturizing cream to avoid dryness of the skin and feet.

Also known as clogging or narrowing of the arteries, this condition means that less blood is able to flow through the blood vessels. If the feet lack a healthy supply, they are more prone to infection following any injury that breaks the skin. Avoid dryness and dry skin cracks with regular use of a moisturising cream.

How to avoid complications?

1. Regular check-up of blood glucose levels. Contacting doctor on noticing irregular trends; this apart it has to be kept in mind that a persons health care team can help spot complications long before symptoms appear.
2. Being aware of common warning signs and risk factors such as chest pain, obesity, constant headaches, numbness or tingling feeling in hands or feet, tiredness or pale skin color.
3. Trying to monitor weight, keeping blood glucose levels close to normal, eating a well-balanced diet and exercising regularly helps a lot. It is also important to check one’s feet for cuts or blisters, and also regularly check cholesterol, blood pressure and blood glucose levels.