Complications of Diabetes

Effect of diabetes on the body aka complications of diabetes

Diabetes is a disease of complications. It does not quite have many symptoms of its own to a great extent, and that’s why people don’t take it seriously, thinking that they do not have any symptoms even at 300-400 blood sugar levels! Over time, high blood sugar levels affect all the body parts - right from your head to toe. Diabetes is similar to termite infestation in the wood - the wood would look fine from outside while it is being damaged slowly from the inside due to the termite.

Common complications of diabetes are:

1. Stroke - Stroke is a condition in which part of the body can get paralyzed due to blood vessels getting a clot or bleeding inside the brain. People with diabetes are at an increased risk of stroke. If blood sugars are uncontrolled, this risk increases further. Therefore, it is important to identify early signs of a stroke like sudden weakness on one side of the body, sudden onset of tingling or numbness on one side of the body. You should go to an emergency if you have any such symptoms. Early diagnosis and treatment can stop it from progressing and also improving the signs to a great extent. To avoid the risk of these from happening, keeping sugars under control is very important. Depending on the patient to patient - Diabetologist in Delhi may recommend cholesterol-lowering medications and blood thinner medicine like aspirin. Talk to your doctor about these medications if they would be advisable for you or not.
2. Heart attack - A heart attack is a condition where there is an obstruction to the blood supply to a heart part. People with diabetes are at an increased risk of this, affecting people at a much younger age if they have a problem with diabetes. Typical symptoms of a heart attack are pain on one side of the chest, which may be associated with sweating, dizziness, etc. Some people might not have the typical symptoms, especially women who might have some chest discomfort, which might confuse gastric or stomach problems. It is always good to get a heart check-up once a year to help pick up issues on time and not ignore the symptoms. If you have any of these symptoms, you should go to the nearest hospital with urgent heart intervention facilities.
3. Retinopathy - Endocrinologists in Delhi believeDiabetes affects all parts of the eye and can cause early cataracts, glaucoma, affect the retina - causing retinopathy. The problem with retinopathy is that people do not have any symptoms because of that, and people can have sudden blindness due to it. Now, talking about the positive side - the retinopathy typically progresses very slowly over the years. Even if you get a complete eye exam, including the retina check or fundoscopy as called in medical language, it can help pick it up in the early stages. It can be treated with laser treatment in the early stages if picked up on time, and you can prevent sudden loss of vision.
4. Neuropathy - The effect of diabetes on the nerves is called neuropathy. Depending on the area where the nerves are involved, people can have a burning sensation in their feet, tingling, or numbness in their feet. There can be an abnormal sensation in the feet, and at times it feels as if you are walking on cotton and have problems wearing your slippers.
5. Autonomic neuropathy - When the nerves around the intestine or stomach are affected, it is called autonomic neuropathy - this can lead to digestion problems, leading to a feeling of fullness, acidity, etc.
6. Skin infections - Diabetes can affect the skin in different ways - some mild symptoms like dryness of skin, skin pigmentation, and severe problems with recurrent infections. In addition to controlling blood sugars, one would need specific treatments to help treat these problems.
7. Dental problems - People with diabetes are more at risk of having recurrent dental infections, gum swelling, pyorrhoea, and losing their teeth much earlier. Once a year, a dental check-up must screen for these problems on a timely basis.
8. Kidney failure - This is one of the serious problems with diabetes. Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure. Diabetes affects the blood circulation in the kidneys. That is why it is important to seek Diabetes treatment in Delhi It leads to leakage of protein in the urine in small amounts - a condition known as “Microalbuminuria” - which over some time can progress to the increased amount of protein in the urine - called “Macroalbuminuria” and further on to “Nephrotic Syndrome.” The first sign of kidneys getting affected due to diabetes is “microalbuminuria.” It takes much longer for the kidney function test (blood tests) to become abnormal. Identifying the condition on time and addressing it on time can help halt or reverse the process of kidney damage.
9. Vascular problems - The blood vessel walls get stiff in people with diabetes, compromising the body’s circulation. It can lead to leg pain on walking or even poor wound healing in the legs and hands.
10. Diabetic foot - This can result from decreased circulation in the legs or nerve damage, or a combination of both. There tends to be poor wound healing capacity of the body due to which a small little injury can lead to significant infection in the foot, which at times might even need amputation if not taken care of on time.
11. Increased risk of cancers - Obesity Doctors believe Diabetes is often associated with obesity, and the combination of two puts people at higher risk of some cancers like breast cancer, uterine cancer, prostate cancer, to name a few.