What are the complications of hyperglycemia?

What are the complications of hyperglycemia?

Long-term complications of untreated hyperglycemia can include:

• Cardiovascular disease.
• Nerve damage (neuropathy)
• Kidney damage (diabetic nephropathy) or kidney failure.
• Damage to the blood vessels of the retina (diabetic retinopathy), potentially leading to blindness.

What is the life threatening complication of untreated hypoglycemia?

Severe hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia happens when blood sugar levels are too low, usually below 70 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl). Without treatment, such low levels of blood sugar can lead to seizures and become life-threatening.

What does the body do when blood sugar gets too low hypoglycemia )?

As hypoglycemia worsens, signs and symptoms can include: Confusion, abnormal behavior or both, such as the inability to complete routine tasks. Visual disturbances, such as blurred vision. Seizures.

What organs are affected by hypoglycemia?

The brain is one of the first organs to be affected by hypoglycemia. Shortage of glucose in the brain, or neuroglycopenia, results in a gradual loss of cognitive functions causing slower reaction time, blurred speech, loss of consciousness, seizures, and ultimately death, as the hypoglycemia progresses.

How low can glucose go before death?

If your blood sugar drops below 70 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), you may have symptoms, such as feeling tired, weak, or shaky. If your blood sugar drops very low (usually below 20 mg/dL) and you do not get help, you could become confused or drowsy or even lose consciousness and possibly die.

What is considered severe hypoglycemia?

Severe hypoglycemia is defined as having low blood glucose levels that requires assistance from another person to treat. Severe hypoglycemia is classed as a diabetic emergency and is a complication that can occur in people with diabetes that take insulin and certain anti-diabetic tablets.

What happens if blood sugar gets too low while sleeping?

They include shakiness, sweating, confusion, erratic behavior, headache, and lightheadedness. With nighttime hypoglycemia, you may wake up with these symptoms or with a higher blood sugar reading that results from the body’s response to an overnight low.

How low can Glucose go before death?

What are the side effects of hypoglycemia?

The complications of hypoglycemia include dizziness, nausea, cold sweats, a fast heart rate, confusion, headache, irritability, coma, and possibly even death.

What are the complications of untreated fasting hypoglycemia?

Untreated fasting hypoglycemia can lead to severe neuroglycopenia and, possibly, death. Mathew P, Thoppil D. Hypoglycemia. 2018 Jan. [Medline].

When does hypoglycemia become a medical emergency?

Over time, repeated episodes of hypoglycemia can lead to hypoglycemia unawareness. The body and brain no longer produce signs and symptoms that warn of low blood sugar, such as shakiness or irregular heartbeats. When this happens, the risk of severe, life-threatening hypoglycemia is increased. Severe low blood sugar is a medical emergency.

Why is hypoglycemia considered a neglected complication?

There is an urgent need to examine the clinical spectrum and burden of hypoglycemia so that adequate control measures can be implemented against this neglected life-threatening complication.