Symptoms of Diabetes
Symptoms of Diabetes: Introduction
The symptoms of diabetes progress according to the range and duration of high blood sugar levels.
The symptoms usually start mild (e.g. poorly healing skin rashes), and then progress
to the more severe symptoms (e.g. excessive thirst and urination),
and then finally to the dangerous life-threatening conditions of HHNS or DKA.
The progression of symptoms is usually slow over years for Type 2 diabetes
and rapid over weeks or months for Type 1 diabetes.
People with Type 2 diabetes often are undiagnosed long enough
that they start to get symptoms of the complications of diabetes,
such as kidney and foot problems.
Symptoms of Diabetes
The list of signs and symptoms mentioned in various sources
for Diabetes includes the 64
symptoms listed below:
Research symptoms & diagnosis of Diabetes:
Diabetes: Complications
Review medical complications possibly associated with Diabetes:
Diabetes Symptoms: Book Excerpts
Diagnostic Testing
Diagnostic testing of medical conditions related to Diabetes:
Research More About Diabetes
Do I have Diabetes?
Diabetes: Medical Mistakes
Diabetes: Undiagnosed Conditions
Diseases that may be commonly undiagnosed in related medical areas:
Home Diagnostic Testing
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Wrongly Diagnosed with Diabetes?
The list of other diseases or medical conditions
that may be on the differential diagnosis list of alternative diagnoses
for Diabetes includes:
- Diabetes insipidus - has a similar type of urination symptom pattern, but is usually ruled out early by a urine or blood glucose test.
- Fructosuria - a rare genetic disease that has fructose sugar in the urine.
- Xylulosuria - a rare genetic disease that has xylulose sugar in the urine.
- Pancreatitis - an inflammation of the pancreas digestive-related areas may also affect the endocrine pancreas side.
- Glucagonoma - a rare form of endocrine pancreatic cancer
- more diagnoses...»
See the full list of 53
alternative diagnoses for Diabetes
Diabetes: Research Doctors & Specialists
- Diabetes & Endocrinology Specialists:
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- Cardiac (Heart) Specialists:
- Pregnancy & Fertility Health Specialists:
- Womens Health Specialists:
- more specialists...»
Research all specialists including ratings, affiliations, and sanctions.
More about symptoms of Diabetes:
More information about symptoms of Diabetes and related conditions:
Other Possible Causes of these Symptoms
Click on any of the symptoms below to see a full list
of other causes including diseases, medical conditions, toxins, drug interactions,
or drug side effect causes of that symptom.
Medical Books Online about Diabetes
Medical Books Excerpts
Excerpts of published medical book chapters related to Diabetes
are available from published medical books
for more detailed information about Diabetes.
Medical Books Excerpts
- GLYCOSURIA
- "Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs" (2003)
- [ read ]
- POLYDIPSIA
- "Algorithmic Diagnosis of Symptoms and Signs" (2003)
- [ read ]
- Polydipsia
- "Handbook of Signs & Symptoms (Third Edition)" (2006)
- [ read ]
- Polydipsia
- "Professional Guide to Signs & Symptoms (Fifth Edition)" (2006)
- [ read ]
- Polydipsia
- "The 10-Minute Diagnosis Manual: Symptoms and Signs in the Time-Limited Encounter" (2000)
- [ read ]
- Diabetes Mellitus
- "The 10-Minute Diagnosis Manual: Symptoms and Signs in the Time-Limited Encounter" (2000)
- [ read ]
- Polydipsia
- "Signs & Symptoms: A 2-in-1 Reference for Nurses" (2007)
- [ read ]
Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.
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Symptoms of Diabetes: Online Medical Books
16 MEDICAL BOOKS ONLINE!
Review excerpts from medical books online, free, without registration,
for more information about the symptoms of Diabetes.
Diabetic complications during pregnancy:
Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Indications for diagnostic screening for maternal diabetes mellitus during pregnancy include obesity, excessive weight gain, excessive hunger or thirst, polyuria, recurrent monilial infections, glycosuria, previous delivery of a large neonate, polyhydramnios, maternal hypertension, and a family history of diabetes.
Uncontrolled diabetes in a pregnant female can cause stillbirth, fetal anomalies, premature delivery, and birth of a neonate who’s large or small for gestational age. Such neonates are predisposed to severe episodes of hypoglycemia shortly after birth and may also develop hypocalcemia, hyperbilirubinemia, and respiratory distress syndrome.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Diabetic ketoacidosis:
Signs and Symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Acetone breath, Kussmaul’s respirations, dehydration, weak and thready pulse, nausea, vomiting, altered level of consciousness, dry mucous membranes, serum glucose level of 300 to 1,500 mg/dl
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Hereditary fructose intolerance:
Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Typically, clinical features of hereditary fructose intolerance appear shortly after dietary introduction of foods containing fructose or sucrose. Symptoms are more severe in infants than in older people and include hypoglycemia, nausea, vomiting, pallor, excessive sweating, cyanosis, and tremor. In neonates and young children, continuous ingestion of foods containing fructose may result in failure to thrive, hypoglycemia, jaundice, hyperbilirubinemia, ascites, hepatomegaly, vomiting, dehydration, hypophosphatemia, albuminuria, aminoaciduria, seizures, coma, febrile episodes, substernal pain, and anemia.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Diabetes mellitus:
Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
Diabetes may begin dramatically with ketoacidosis or insidiously. Its most common symptom is fatigue from energy deficiency and a catabolic state. Insulin deficiency causes hyperglycemia, which pulls fluid from body tissues, causing osmotic diuresis, polyuria, dehydration, polydipsia, dry mucous membranes, poor skin turgor and, in most patients, unexplained weight loss.
ELDER TIP Because their thirst mechanism functions less effectively, older adults may not report polydipsia, a hallmark of diabetes in younger adults.
In ketoacidosis and hyperosmolar hyperglycemic nonketotic syndrome, dehydration may cause hypovolemia and shock. Wasting of glucose in the urine usually produces weight loss and hunger in type 1 diabetes, even if the patient eats voraciously.
Long-term effects of diabetes may include retinopathy, nephropathy, atherosclerosis, and peripheral and autonomic neuropathy. Peripheral neuropathy usually affects the hands and feet and may cause numbness or pain. Autonomic neuropathy may manifest itself in several ways, including gastroparesis (leading to delayed gastric emptying and a feeling of nausea and fullness after meals), nocturnal diarrhea, impotence, and orthostatic hypotension.
Because hyperglycemia impairs the patient’s resistance to infection, diabetes may result in skin and urinary tract infections (UTIs) and vaginitis. Glucose content of the epidermis and urine encourages bacterial growth.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Diabetes insipidus:
Signs and symptoms
(Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition))
The patient’s history typically shows an abrupt onset of extreme polyuria (usually 4 to 16 L/day of dilute urine but sometimes as much as 30 L/day). As a result, the patient is extremely thirsty and drinks great quantities of water to compensate for the body’s water loss. This disorder may also result in nocturia. In severe cases, it may lead to extreme fatigue from inadequate rest caused by frequent voiding and excessive thirst.
Other characteristic features of diabetes insipidus include signs and symptoms of dehydration (poor tissue turgor, dry mucous membranes, constipation, muscle weakness, dizziness, and hypotension). These symptoms usually begin abruptly, commonly appearing within 1 to 2 days after a basal skull fracture, a stroke, or surgery. Relieving cerebral edema or increased intracranial pressure may cause all of these symptoms to subside just as rapidly as they began.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Professional Guide to Diseases (Eighth Edition), 2005
Diabetic complications during pregnancy:
Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)
All women should receive diagnostic screening for maternal diabetes mellitus during pregnancy. Women at higher risk or with a history of gestational diabetes, fetal or birth problems, may warrant early screening in the second trimester using a formal glucose tolerance test.
Uncontrolled diabetes in a pregnant woman can cause stillbirth, fetal anomalies, premature delivery, and birth of an infant who is large or small for gestational age. Such infants are predisposed to severe episodes of hypoglycemia shortly after birth. These infants may also develop hypocalcemia, hyperbilirubinemia, and respiratory distress syndrome.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
Diabetes mellitus:
Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)
Diabetes may begin dramatically with ketoacidosis in type 1 or insidiously. Its most common symptom is fatigue, from energy deficiency and a catabolic state. However, many patients with type 2 diabetes may be asymptomatic.
Insulin deficiency or resistance causes hyperglycemia, which pulls fluid from body tissues, causing osmotic diuresis, polyuria, dehydration, polydipsia, dry mucous membranes, and poor skin turgor. In ketoacidosis and hyperglycemic hyperosmolar nonketotic state, dehydration may cause hypovolemia and shock. Wasting of glucose in the urine usually produces weight loss and hunger in uncontrolled type 1 diabetes, even if the patient eats voraciously.
Long-term effects
In diabetes, long-term effects may include retinopathy, nephropathy, atherosclerosis, and peripheral and autonomic neuropathy.
Peripheral neuropathy usually affects the hands and feet and may cause numbness or pain. Autonomic neuropathy may manifest itself in several ways, including gastroparesis (leading to delayed gastric emptying and a feeling of nausea and fullness after meals), nocturnal diarrhea, impotence, and postural hypotension.
Because hyperglycemia impairs the patient’s resistance to infection, diabetes may result in skin and urinary tract infections and vaginitis. Glucose content of the epidermis and urine encourages bacterial growth.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
Diabetes insipidus:
Signs and symptoms
(Handbook of Diseases)
The patient’s history typically shows an abrupt onset of extreme polyuria (usually 4 to 16 L/day of dilute urine, but sometimes as much as 30 L/day). As a result, the patient is extremely thirsty and drinks great quantities of water to compensate for the body’s water loss. This disorder may also result in hourly nocturia.
If the patient is unable to obtain adequate quantities of water, features of diabetes insipidus include signs and symptoms of dehydration (poor tissue turgor, dry mucous membranes, constipation, muscle weakness, dizziness, and hypotension). Polyuria usually begins abruptly, commonly appearing within 1 to 2 days after a basal skull fracture, a stroke, or surgery.
Relieving cerebral edema or increased intracranial pressure may cause all of these symptoms to subside just as rapidly as they began.
» READ BOOK EXCERPT ONLINE »
Source: Handbook of Diseases, 2003
Article Excerpts About Symptoms of Diabetes:
Am I at Risk for Type 2 Diabetes: NIDDK (Excerpt)
Many people have no signs or symptoms. Symptoms can also be so mild
that you might not even notice them. Five million people in the United
States have type 2 diabetes and do not know it. Here is what to look
for:
- increased thirst
- increased hunger
- fatigue
- increased urination, especially at night
- weight loss
- blurred vision
- sores that do not heal
Sometimes people have symptoms but do not suspect diabetes. They delay
scheduling a checkup because they do not feel sick. Many people do not
find out they have the disease until they have diabetes complications,
such as blurry vision or heart trouble. It is important to find out early
if you have diabetes because treatment can prevent damage to the body from
diabetes. (Source: excerpt from Am I at Risk for Type 2 Diabetes: NIDDK)
Keep your kidneys healthy: NIDDK (Excerpt)
An early sign of kidney damage is when your kidneys leak small amounts
of a protein called albumin (al-BYOO-min) into the urine.
With more damage, the kidneys leak more and more protein. This problem
is called proteinuria (PRO-tee-NOOR-ee-uh). More and more wastes build up
in the blood. This damage gets worse until the kidneys fail.
(Source: excerpt from Keep your kidneys healthy: NIDDK)
Dealing With Diabetes - Age Page - Health Information: NIA (Excerpt)
Some people with diabetes feel "run down" or have symptoms that
may go unrecognized. Others have symptoms such as feeling thirsty,
urinating frequently, losing weight, feeling tired, having blurred
vision, getting skin infections, and having slow healing cuts and
bruises. These problems should be reported to a doctor right
away. (Source: excerpt from Dealing With Diabetes - Age Page - Health Information: NIA)
Medical articles and books on symptoms:
These general reference articles may be of interest
in relation to medical signs and symptoms of disease in general:
Full list of premium articles on symptoms and diagnosis
About signs and symptoms of Diabetes:
The symptom information on this page
attempts to provide a list of some possible signs and symptoms of Diabetes.
This signs and symptoms information for Diabetes has been gathered from various sources,
may not be fully accurate,
and may not be the full list of Diabetes signs or Diabetes symptoms.
Furthermore, signs and symptoms of Diabetes may vary on an individual basis for each patient.
Only your doctor can provide adequate diagnosis of any signs or symptoms and whether they
are indeed Diabetes symptoms.
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Your risk of developing heart disease, stroke or diabetes is greatly increased if you suffer from a combination of health problems, known as...
Studies show nearly 3 out of every 4 women will experience a yeast infection at least once in their life. For women with diabetes, however, the risk...
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» Next page: Diagnostic Tests for Diabetes
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