what is diabetes
Diabetes is a disease of the pancreas that sits underneath the stomach and the liver.
- When you eat something and it hits your stomach, the pancreas detects these changes in glucose level and will secret insulin to bring the level back down if the concentration is high
- If blood glucose goes down the pancreas secretes glucagon, which increases endogenous blood glucose levels through glycogenolysis.
what are the complications associated with diabetes
what are the alpha and beta cells
Within the pancreas, there are alpha and beta cells
- There is a single islet of Langerhans and within these cells are a ball of red cells which is the insulin-producing beta cells
- The beta cells are insulin-producing and the alpha cells produce glucagon so when your blood glucose drops, glucagon is released and tells your liver to release glucose
- When your blood glucose increase, insulin is produced in the beta cells
- The alpha and beta cells are sensitive to glucose
- In patients who have type 1 diabetes the beta cells are destroyed
what is T1D
what is T2D
what is the difference between t1D and t2D
Both types of diabetes are the destruction of beta cells in Type 1 it occurs quickly wheras I type 2 it happens over a period of time
Type 1 need to manage by educating patients how to inject themselves and in type 2 if discovered early enough can try and get the beta cells back by educating with lifestyle intervention or drugs such as metformin
what are the characteristics of T1D
how do you test your blood glucose level
Done by measuring blood glucose by finger pricking, calculating carbohydrates, injecting insulin, need to see if you need to make any adjustments. If not cautious can get hypo/hyperglycaemia which can produce complications if not controlled.
Can be frustrating because lots of fingerpicking (it hurts) and there is an increased risk of infection.
what is the basal-bolus regime
what are the criteria of the basal-bolus regime and when is this an exception for young children
Basal Bolus Regime
- All children and young people should be offered a basal-bolus regime from the time they are diagnosed
Except:
- If a child needs such a small dose of insulin that it is too difficult to get the dosing right
- If it is felt inappropriate to expect a child <5yrs to have 4 or more injections a day
what are the advantages of the basal-bolus regime
flexible
freedom
tighter control
what are the disadvantages of basal bolus regime
more injections
commitment
young children
what is carbscount
Carbscount is a book which allows patients to understand how much insulin they need depending on what they have eaten
- Done by giving them a book or putting them in a structured education programme
what is mysugr
digital technologies which are easy to access as it is done through your phone and don’t need to see HCP all the time and you can just record everything on your phone
-aimed at younger people
what is glucose buddy
Ones that mimic structured programmes
E.g. Glucose Buddy
Available on your phone and it is about peer support, talking with other people about your experience, struggles etc
Informal way to connect with people eg putting up recipes which are low carb
what is the new technologies of measuring glucose level
Finger prick testing but more and more patients are able to use new technologies instead of having to do a finger prick testing and getting test strips etc
For example:
Dexcom G6 is a glucose sensor which goes into your abdomen and you have a little PDA that will tell you what your blood glucose levels are but now you attach it and sync it with your phone/smartwatch. Improves quality of life and has alarms which will tell you if you are hypoglycaemic. Removes worry from parents if the child is hypoglycaemic as it sets off an alarm so no need to worry whether or not a child will go into a diabetic coma.
Another example is the freestyle libre
- Are a glucose sensor and syncs it to a phone
give an example of an artificial pancreas
New technologies
For example, Medtronic is like an artificial pancreas
Links together the glucose sensor on an insulin pump to give patients a completely free pancreas. The pump adapts to insulin and avoids complications
what are some of the procedures for diabetes
what are some of the Challenges to understanding the immunology of T1D
how to overcome these challenges of the immunology of T1D
list the signs and symptoms of diabetes
Symptoms that are more common in adults
what are the 3 diagnostic tests for diabetes
how do you do the random blood glucose test
how do you do the fasting plasma glucose test