Long Term Complications of Diabetes

09 Apr

Posted by admin as Complications

Diabetes is a disease in which the body doesn’t produce or properly use insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas, an organ near the stomach. Insulin is needed to turn sugar and other food into energy. When you have diabetes, your body either doesn’t make enough insulin or can’t use its own insulin as well as it should, or both. This causes sugars to build up too high in your blood.

Many of the diabetes complications don’t show up until after many years — even decades — of having the disease. They usually develop silently and gradually over time, so even if people with diabetes aren’t having any signs of complications, they may still eventually develop them.

Long-term complications related to diabetes are often linked to having high blood sugar levels over a long period of time. But blood sugar control isn’t the only thing that determines a person’s risk for complications. Other factors, like genes, can also play a role. Many of the complications of diabetes don’t show up until after many years of having the disease. They usually develop silently and gradually over time, so even if your child isn’t having any symptoms, he or she may still eventually develop diabetes complications.

People with diabetes are at risk for blood vessel injury, which may be severe enough to cause tissue damage in the legs and feet. If nerve damage is also a problem, then the person may not be aware of the injuries that have occurred in their legs or feet.

At that point, minor infections sometimes develop into deep tissue injuries that can require surgery. In extreme cases, amputation of the foot or limb may be necessary. Foot care is very important to prevent the need for amputation.

Diabetes increases the risk of cardiovascular problems, including heart attacks and strokes. Canadian data indicate that people aged 35 to 64 who have diabetes are six times more likely to have heart disease or stroke than non-diabetics in the same age group.Blood pressure control is important for people with diabetes for many reasons. Diabetes increases a person’s risk for various conditions, including heart disease, stroke, kidney damage and eye problems. High blood pressure itself increases these risks, too.

Glaucoma: People who have diabetes also have a greater chance of getting glaucoma. In this disease, pressure builds up inside the eye, which can decrease blood flow to the retina and optic nerve and damage them. At first, a person may not have symptoms, but if it’s not treated, glaucoma can cause a person to lose vision. The risk increases as a person gets older and has had diabetes longer. Treatment for glaucoma includes medications to lower the pressure inside the eye and sometimes surgery.

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