Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic disease in which patient cant utilize glucose present in the body either due to decreased insulin or due to insulin resistance in body. There are basically two types of diabetes:
- Diabetes Mellitus Type I: It occurs due to destruction of insulin producing cells ( beta-cells) in the islet of Langerhans of pancreas. This occurs due to some autoimmune disorders, pancreatitis, infections. Destruction of beta-cells leads to decreased production of insulin. Insulin is required by muscle cells to draw the sugar in blood into themselves. But in absence of insulin they cant do it and sugar remains circulating in blood leading to a rise in blood sugar level i.e. Diabetes.
- Diabetes Mellitus Type II: This type usually occurs in obese people in whom resistance to insulin developes. So there is insulin but muscle cant use them for glucose uptake as insulin cant attach to its receptors because the receptors becomes defective. Pancreas tries to overcome to this situation by producing increased amount of insulin, which leads to increased weight in turn. But after some period of time the pancreas gets exhausted of overwork and the insulin levels start to decline.
Symptoms: The patient usually feels lethargic, due to decreased amount of glucose in muscle. Thirst, Polyuria occur when kidneys no longer can retain the sugar lost in urine leading to increased osmotic outflow. Increased appetite is also a symptom.
Usually in type I diabetes the symptoms lead to diagnosis at once but there is no hidden disease while in type II patient develops symptoms very late and is diagnosed late or accidentally during regular check up.
Treatment:
Type I can be treated by using insulin, combination of insulins.
Type II: Here diet and lifestyle modification along with oral hypogycemics like metformin is prescribed. Exercise usually helps to decrease the insulin resistance. But after a few years when beta cell get exhausted of producing excess insulin, recombinant insulin injections are required.
