Diabetic neuropathySymptoms

Diabetic neuropathy is a type of nerve damage that can occur if you have diabetes. High blood sugar can injure nerve fibers throughout your body, but diabetic neuropathy most often damages nerves in your legs and feet.

Depending on the affected nerves, symptoms of diabetic neuropathy can range from pain and numbness in your extremities to problems with your digestive system, urinary tract, blood vessels and heart. For some people, these symptoms are mild; for others, diabetic neuropathy can be painful, disabling and even fatal.

Diabetic neuropathy is a common serious complication of diabetes. Yet you can often prevent diabetic neuropathy or slow its progress with tight blood sugar control and a healthy lifestyle.

Symptoms

There are four main types of diabetic neuropathy. You may have just one type or symptoms of several types. Most develop gradually, and you may not notice problems until considerable damage has occurred.

The signs and symptoms of diabetic neuropathy vary, depending on the type of neuropathy and which nerves are affected.

Peripheral neuropathy
Peripheral neuropathy is the most common form of diabetic neuropathy. Your feet and legs are often affected first, followed by your hands and arms. Possible signs and symptoms of peripheral neuropathy include:

• Numbness or reduced ability to feel pain or changes in temperature, especially in your feet and toes
• A tingling or burning feeling
• Sharp, jabbing pain that may be worse at night
• Pain when walking
• Extreme sensitivity to the lightest touch — for some people, even the weight of a sheet can be agonizing
• Muscle weakness and difficulty walking
• Serious foot problems, such as ulcers, infections, deformities, and bone and joint pain

Diabetic ketoacidosis AND Symptoms

Diabetic ketoacidosis is a serious complication of diabetes that occurs when your body produces high levels of blood acids called ketones.

Diabetic ketoacidosis develops when your body is unable to produce enough insulin. Insulin normally plays a key role in helping sugar (glucose) — a major source of energy for your muscles and other tissues — enter your cells. Without enough insulin, your body begins to break down fat as an alternate fuel. This process produces a buildup of toxic acids in the bloodstream called ketones, eventually leading to diabetic ketoacidosis if untreated.

If you have diabetes or you're at risk of diabetes, learn the warning signs of diabetic ketoacidosis — and know when to seek emergency care.

Symptoms

Diabetic ketoacidosis signs and symptoms often develop quickly, sometimes within 24 hours. For some, these signs and symptoms may be the first indication of having diabetes. You may notice:

• Excessive thirst
• Frequent urination
• Nausea and vomiting
• Abdominal pain
• Weakness or fatigue
• Shortness of breath
• Fruity-scented breath
• Confusion

Diabetes and Symptoms

Diabetes mellitus refers to a group of diseases that affect how your body uses blood glucose, commonly called blood sugar. Glucose is vital to your health because it's an important source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues. It's also your brain's main source of fuel.

If you have diabetes, no matter what type, it means you have too much glucose in your blood, although the reasons may differ. Too much glucose can lead to serious health problems.

Chronic diabetes conditions include type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Potentially reversible diabetes conditions include prediabetes — when your blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as diabetes — and gestational diabetes, which occurs during pregnancy but may resolve after the baby is delivered.

Symptoms

• Increased thirst
• Frequent urination
• Extreme hunger
• Unexplained weight loss
• Presence of ketones in the urine (ketones are a byproduct of the breakdown of muscle and fat that happens when there's not enough insulin)
• Fatigue
• Blurred vision
• Slow-healing sores
• High blood pressure
• Frequent infections, such as gums or skin infections and vaginal or bladder infections

What Are Diabetes Pens?

Diabetes pens are an alternative way of injecting insulin that have been used around the world for years and are slowly catching on in the United States.

Unlike using a syringe and vial for insulin, a diabetes pen has a reservoir that holds the insulin and a disposable needle at the ‘tip’ of the pen.

To use an insulin pen, a person sets the amount of insulin they need, usually by turning a dial, attaches a new needle, inserts the needle under the skin, presses a button to inject the insulin and holds the needle in place for five seconds before removing it. After each injection, the needle is removed and thrown away.

Insulin pens have several advantages over the traditional syringe and vial. The pens allow more accurate dosing, they are easier to carry in a purse or pocket, they can be used discretely, and are easier to use for people with motor control problems or poor eyesight.

The one major disadvantage of insulin pens is they do not allow mixing different types of insulin, so people using more than one type of insulin may need to double the number of injections they have. However, manufacturers are addressing the problem, and some companies are offering diabetes pens that have mixed insulin in the reservoir.

There are two kinds of diabetes pens, reusable and disposable. The reusable pens use insulin cartridges that get replaced when they run empty. Disposable pens have their reservoir built in and the whole pen is thrown out and replaced when it runs out of insulin.

A few companies make special diabetes pens for children that come in bright colors and fun designs, such as the NovoPen Junior, a refillable diabetes pen made by Novo Nordisk.

Insurance coverage for diabetes pens varies widely in the United States with some companies covering them just like syringes and vials, and other insurance policies not covering them at all.

Diabetes pens are an alternative way of injecting insulin that have been used around the world for years and are slowly catching on in the United States.
Unlike using a syringe and vial for insulin, a diabetes pen has a reservoir that holds the insulin and a disposable needle at the ‘tip’ of the pen.

To use an insulin pen, a person sets the amount of insulin they need, usually by turning a dial, attaches a new needle, inserts the needle under the skin, presses a button to inject the insulin and holds the needle in place for five seconds before removing it. After each injection, the needle is removed and thrown away.

Insulin pens have several advantages over the traditional syringe and vial. The pens allow more accurate dosing, they are easier to carry in a purse or pocket, they can be used discretely, and are easier to use for people with motor control problems or poor eyesight.
The one major disadvantage of insulin pens is they do not allow mixing different types of insulin, so people using more than one type of insulin may need to double the number of injections they have. However, manufacturers are addressing the problem, and some companies are offering diabetes pens that have mixed insulin in the reservoir.

There are two kinds of diabetes pens, reusable and disposable. The reusable pens use insulin cartridges that get replaced when they run empty. Disposable pens have their reservoir built in and the whole pen is thrown out and replaced when it runs out of insulin.
A few companies make special diabetes pens for children that come in bright colors and fun designs, such as the NovoPen Junior, a refillable diabetes pen made by Novo Nordisk.
Insurance coverage for diabetes pens varies widely in the United States with some companies covering them just like syringes and vials, and other insurance policies not covering them at all.