Complications of Uncontrolled Diabetes

Diabetes has become a growing epidemic with an estimated 23.6 million people diagnosed with diabetes, and 57 million people diagnosed as pre-diabetic in the United States alone (Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper, Bucher, & Camera, 2011). Diabetes is a chronic, multisystem disease in which the body is unable to produce insulin, or the body becomes resistant to the insulin produced. The alteration in insulin regulation in the body results in elevated blood glucose (sugar) levels called hyperglycemia (Lewis et al.). Diabetes is a manageable disorder with the proper blood glucose level control, but when hyperglycemia is not properly managed, diabetes becomes a major cause of morbidity and mortality (Deshpande, Harris-Hayes, & Schootman, 2008). The effects of chronic hyperglycemia in diabetics’ results in numerous chronic complications, but the most disabling include diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephropathy, cardiovascular disease, and diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

Diabetic retinopathy is the decreased circulation of blood in the eye resulting in permanent visual changes or blindness (Lewis et al., 2011). Lewis, Dirksen, Heitkemper, Bucher, and Camera (2011) noted, “Diabetic retinopathy is estimated to be the most common cause of new cases of blindness in people ages 20 to 74 years” (p. 1248). The alteration of vision is the effect of chronic hyperglycemia, which if left uncontrolled, causes blood vessels in the eye to rupture leading to the detachment of the retina (Deshpande et al., 2008). Deshpande, Harris-Haynes, and Schootman (2008) noted, “As much as 90% of blindness due to retinopathy among people with diabetes may be preventable if detected and treated early” (p. 1259). Yearly eye examinations detect development of blood...

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...nephropathy, cardiovascular disease, and diabetic peripheral neuropathy. These complications can be avoided through the management of hyperglycemia through proper glucose monitoring, exercise, diet, and medication administration (Lewis et al., 2011). Following a diabetic care plan properly to manage diabetes will decrease or eliminate the complication of the disease.

Works Cited

Deshpande, A. D., Harris-Hayes, M., & Schootman, M. (2008). Epidemiology of diabetes and diabetes-related complications. Physical Therapy, 88(11), 1254-1264. Retrieved April 1, 2014, from http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=cff0fd93-34a8- 4511-a16b-c7880e7c89b3%40sessionmgr4002&vid=2&hid=4112

Lewis, S. L., Dirksen, S. R., Heitkemper, M. M., Bucher, L., & Camera, I. M. (2011). Diabetes Mellitus. Medical-Surgical Nursing (8 ed., pp. 1218-1252). St. Louis: ELSEVIER.