Contents:
- Medical Video: Diabetes & Heart Disease
- Diabetes and hypoglycemia
- What is hypoglycemia?
- How can low blood sugar levels cause death?
- Reducing the risk of hypoglycemia
Medical Video: Diabetes & Heart Disease
Hypoglycemia, aka low blood sugar levels, is one of the common conditions that may occur in patients with diabetes who are treated with insulin. However, can hypoglycemia cause death? How did it happen?
Diabetes and hypoglycemia
In diabetics, the main obligation that must be done is to keep their blood sugar levels normal. Diabetics have high blood sugar levels in the blood. This is due to the failure of insulin in the body of diabetics. Insulin which should serve as a funnel so that the sugar content in the blood can enter the body's cells to be used as energy unable to carry out its duties. As a result, the sugar in the blood cannot be used as energy and stays in the blood.
When blood sugar levels become too high, this will have an impact on other body health, ranging from visual problems, nerves, sexual function, and kidney damage. That's why diabetes is called the mother of all diseases.
When you get a diagnosis of diabetes, you may not be immediately advised to take blood sugar control medicines. You will first be advised to change your diet and exercise more regularly. When the two things are able to control blood glucose, people with diabetes do not need to take medication as long as both lifestyle changes are consistently implemented.
If diabetes can no longer be controlled using diet and exercise, the use of oral medicines will begin to be included in your treatment plan. If you still have not managed to meet the normal blood sugar target, the use of insulin along with medication may be given.
Even if it functions to help maintain blood sugar levels, the fact that drugs and insulin can still bring you the risk of diabetes complications, namely hypoglycemia. This low blood sugar level can occur as a result of inappropriate treatment, too much medication dose, or because of a lack of calorie intake.
What is hypoglycemia?
At the media discussion with the theme "New Generation of Insulin Therapy Innovations as a Solution for Diabetes Patients with Risk of Hypoglycemia", Dr. Dante Saksono, Sp.PD-KEMD, Ph.D., an endocrinologist from the Department of Internal Medicine RSCM / FKUI explained that hypoglycemia is a condition that is quite dangerous especially because the symptoms are often unknown to patients who experience it. That is why education from the doctor to the patient is important so that someone who is attacked by hypoglycemia can handle it as soon as possible.
Common symptoms of low blood sugar levels are:
- Trembling body
- Feeling very tired
- Heart palpitations
- A cold sweat
- Restless
- Tingling around the mouth
- Starving
- Blurred vision
- Easy to get angry
Different types of diabetes, different causes of hypoglycemia are commonly experienced. In people with type 1 diabetes, generally low blood sugar levels occur due to excess insulin. While in type 2 diabetes, cases of hypoglycemia are more often caused due to lack of food or lack of calories.
In general there is no person with diabetes whose blood sugar is 100 percent always normal. At the very least, they must have experienced occasional hypoglycemia. However, if the condition of low blood sugar levels often occurs and continues to recur, this is what should be watched out for. The condition of hypoglycemia can cause death if it occurs repeatedly and is not immediately treated.
How can low blood sugar levels cause death?
Hypoglycemia aka low blood sugar levels can cause death is true. However, don't panic because death from hypoglycemia is not an instant process. That is, not once you get hypoglycemia, your life is threatened immediately.
It is true that hypoglycemia is a dangerous condition and can cause death if left unchecked. In fact, about 10 percent of people with diabetes experience death due to low blood sugar levels. But what kind of hypoglycemia? "Hypoglycemia that can cause death is hypoglycemia that occurs continuously," said Dr. Dante Saksono, Sp.Pd-KEMD, Ph.D when met in media discussions (24/10), at RSCM, Jakarta.
When a person experiences hypoglycemia, he also experiences heart inflammation and increases the risk of atherosclerosis. This has the potential for cardiovascular disease. "Hypoglycemia can also change a person's heart rhythm," he added, "when hypoglycemia persists, a person's heart rhythm will also experience continuous changes. This change in heart rhythm is called arrhythmia. "
Even though arrhythmia is a fairly common condition, if it occurs continuously the normal heart rhythm will change according to the condition of hypoglycemia. Changes in heart rhythms that adjust to the conditions of low blood sugar levels are certainly not normal. This can cause the heart pump to not work optimally.
Because heart rate changes, diabetic patients who have complications of hypoglycemia often experience Long QT syndrome. This syndrome causes your heart rate to be irregular and can cause sudden death. This reason is also what causes a person not to wake up from sleep when experiencing hypoglycemia at night.
These various reasons underlying diabetes patients routinely monitor blood sugar levels through independent blood sugar checks. Consult your doctor if you experience a hypoglycemia condition that is frequent enough to get the appropriate treatment.
Reducing the risk of hypoglycemia
The risk of hypoglycemia can be reduced in several ways, one of which is to keep your meal portion stable. If you use insulin regularly, the amount of insulin you receive will have a fixed dose. Determination of the dosage usually also considers your daily meal portion. Therefore, when you reduce your meal, but still get insulin injections according to the dosage, you are at risk of getting hypoglycemia even after eating.
Another thing you can do to prevent low blood sugar levels is to use insulin which has a slow working method. Slow work insulin will work more stable in your body. You can discuss with your doctor about alternative treatments or insulin that you can use.
Sometimes some medications can increase your risk of developing low blood sugar levels, which is why it is very important to ask your doctor about possible side effects caused by your treatment.
