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Complications of Diabetes
By peace | November 23, 2007
Untreated or poorly controlled diabetes can lead to a variety of conditions affecting different body systems. Maintaining tight control of your blood glucose levels is the best preventative measure. A healthy eating plan and regular exercise should help to minimize your chances of developing heart and blood vessel disease. This becomes more important as the diabetic patient gets older when damage to the cardiovascular system is likely to reveal itself with problems such as angina, heart attacks, and stroke.
Having diabetes puts the diabetic patient at risk of long-term complications, though many people develop only minor problems and many none at all. For example, diabetes can affect the eyes in various different ways, ranging from a temporary blurring of the vision to the more serious effects of retinopathy(damage to the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye).
1. Retinopathy
This problem can result from damage to blood vessels at the back of the eye which serve the retina. Small blisters may form in the vessel wall then burst, causing bleeding, or the blood vessels themselves may become leaky. If nothing is done, new and fragile blood vessels may grow in an attempt to restore a normal blood supply to the retina and they too may bleed.
If these changes are picked up at an early stage, they can be treated effectively with lasers. Such treatment stops further damage occurring and usually prevents the patient’s sight getting any worse. That is why it is important for people with diabetes to have regular eye checks at least once a year. They are normally done at the hospital outpatients’ clinic.
2. Cataracts
Diabetic patients who have had diabetes for a long time are more susceptible to cataracts because of a build-up of sugars in the lens of the eye. These make the lens of the eye opaque, interfering with the transmission of light to the back of the eye, and can be a particular nuisance in bright sunlight. Fortunately, this problem can be treated quite easily with a simple operation to replace the damaged lens with a plastic one.
3. Heart Disease
There is a wide range of drugs available to treat heart disease, and new ones are being introduced all the time. Blocked arteries can often be opened up by angioplasty, while bypass operations can replace arteries that are damaged beyond repair. Even after an actual heart attack, many people make a good recovery and are able to return to normal living.
4. High Blood Pressure
It is important that the blood pressure be measured regularly. If it is raised, the diabetic patient will be given advice on changing their diet and lifestyle. Drug treatment might be administered.
5. Kidney Disease
High blood pressure is associated with kidney problems. When albumin is detected in the patient’s urine, it may be a sign of kidney disease caused by diabetes. The diabetic patient should take steps to ensure that his blood glucose levels are within the normal range. This patient may be prescribed tablets to lower blood pressure. If the disease becomes severe enough to stop the kidneys from working, then the patient has to undergo dialysis or have a kidney transplant.
6. Impotence
Damage to the blood vessels and the nerves supplying the penis may cause impotence in men who have had diabetes for many years especially if it has not been well controlled. Possible treatment includes viagra.
7. Feet Infection
Diabetic patients need special care to avoid feet infection, particularly if there are reduced sensation which may prevent them from noticing any infection in existence. A severe untreated infection could lead to gangrene. Damage to the blood supply in the feet, especially in older people with hardening or clogging of the arteries, also increases the risk of gangrene.
Topics: Diseases |
