Please enjoy our free resource for plain explanations of most health concerns. The Northeast Professional Caregivers Knowldge Center is searchable, authoritatively sourced, constantly updated.
What is diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease in which your blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high. Glucose comes from foods you eat. The cells of your body need glucose for energy. A hormone called insulin helps the glucose get into your cells.
With type 1 diabetes, your body doesn't make insulin. With type 2 diabetes, your body doesn't make or use insulin well. Without enough insulin, glucose builds up in your blood and causes high blood sugar levels.
What is diabetic heart disease?Diabetic heart disease is a term for heart disease in people who have diabetes. If you have diabetes, you are much more likely to develop heart disease or have a stroke than people who don't have diabetes. And you may start having these problems at a younger age.
Over time, the effects of high blood sugar from diabetes can include damage to the blood vessels and nerves in your heart. This damage increases your chance of developing heart diseases, including:
Diabetes puts you at serious risk for heart disease. It also makes you more likely to develop other conditions that raise your risk even more, including:
Your risk for heart disease is also higher if you
In the early stages, heart disease usually doesn't have any symptoms. But if your heart disease worsens, you can have symptoms. Your symptoms will depend on the type of heart disease you have. They might include:
It's important to know that people with diabetes may not feel chest pain. That's because diabetes can damage the nerves in your heart. If you have any symptoms that could be heart disease, talk with your health care provider.
How is diabetic heart disease diagnosed?To find out if you have diabetic heart disease, your provider will:
Depending on your risk level, your provider may send you to a cardiologist (a doctor who specializes in heart diseases) for care. If you do have heart disease, treatment will depend on the type of heart disease you have.
How can I prevent diabetic heart disease?You may be able to prevent heart disease or keep it from getting worse by working with your provider to:
NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
If you have diabetes, your blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high. Over time, this can damage your kidneys. Your kidneys clean your blood. If they are damaged, waste and fluids build up in your blood instead of leaving your body.
Kidney damage from diabetes is called diabetic nephropathy. It begins long before you have symptoms. People with diabetes should get regular screenings for kidney disease. Tests include a urine test to detect protein in your urine and a blood test to show how well your kidneys are working.
If the damage continues, your kidneys could fail. In fact, diabetes is the most common cause of kidney failure in the United States. People with kidney failure need either dialysis or a kidney transplant.
You can slow down kidney damage or keep it from getting worse. Controlling your blood sugar and blood pressure, taking your medicines and not eating too much protein can help.
NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
If you have diabetes, your blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high. Over time, this can damage the covering on your nerves or the blood vessels that bring oxygen to your nerves. Damaged nerves may stop sending messages, or may send messages slowly or at the wrong times.
This damage is called diabetic neuropathy. Over half of people with diabetes get it. Symptoms may include:
Your doctor will diagnose diabetic neuropathy with a physical exam and nerve tests. Controlling your blood sugar can help prevent nerve problems, or keep them from getting worse. Treatment may include pain relief and other medicines.
NIH: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
The field of ethics studies principles of right and wrong. There is hardly an area in medicine that doesn't have an ethical aspect. For example, there are ethical issues relating to :
What are patient rights?
As a patient, you have certain rights. Some are guaranteed by federal law, such as the right to get a copy of your medical records and the right to keep them private and secure. Many states have additional laws protecting patients. And some states, insurance plans, medical organizations, and health care facilities have their own patient bill of rights.
Some other examples of patient rights include:
Informed consent is an important patient right. It is a process in which your health care provider gives you the information you need to make decisions about your care. The types of care could be treatments, procedures, genetic testing, or clinical trials. The information should include the risks and benefits of the care, as well as details about your medical condition.
It's important that you understand everything before you give consent. Sometimes your provider will ask you to sign a form to give your consent. This is called written consent.
You have the right to change your mind about consent at any time.
Where can I get help with patient rights?There are different resources that can help you if you have a problem with your patient rights: