Child Diabetes: Complications
Heart and Circulatory Complications |
Dental Complications Kidney Complications |
Foot Problems |
Eye and Vision Complications Nerve Complications |
Skin Complications
Heart and Circulatory Complications
Heart and blood vessel
problems are the main causes of sickness and death among diabetics. These
problems can lead to poor blood flow in the legs and feet, high blood pressure,
heart attacks, and strokes.
If your child feels dizzy,
has sudden sight loss, slurred speech, or numbness or weakness in one arm or
leg, they may be having serious circulation problems. Other danger signs of
circulation problems to the heart include chest pain or pressure, shortness of
breath, swollen ankles, or irregular heartbeats. If your child has any of these
signs, go to an emergency room or call your health care provider right away.
Pain in the buttocks,
thighs, or calves during physical activity can be a sign of circulation
problems to the legs. Report these problems to your child's doctor.
Keep the heart healthy:
- Eat healthy
- Get regular physical
activity
- Stop smoking
- Check blood pressure
- Check cholesterol
Dental Complications
Because of high blood
glucose, people with diabetes are more likely to have problems with their teeth
and gums. You need to care for your child's teeth and gums every day to keep
them healthy.
Regular, complete dental
care also helps prevent dental disease. Pay attention to the gums—they can show
you if there are dental problems. Sore, swollen and bleeding gums are a sign of
gingivitis. Periodontitis occurs when your gums shrink or pull away from your
teeth.
Reduce dental problems:
- Keep your blood glucose
under control
- Brush your teeth
- Floss daily
- Get regular dental care
Kidney Complications
Diabetes can cause
diabetic kidney disease, which can lead to kidney failure. There are steps you
and your child can take to control and prevent kidney problems. Controlling
their blood glucose can prevent or delay the onset of kidney disease. Keeping
blood pressure under control is also important.
The kidneys regulate the
water in the body and help filter out harmful wastes. The waste passes from the
body in the urine. Diabetes can damage the parts of the kidneys that filter out
wastes. When the kidneys fail, a person has to have his or her blood filtered
through a machine (a treatment called dialysis) several times a week or has to
get a kidney transplant.
Your child's doctor can
test for a protein (microalbumin) in the urine to check on the health of the
kidneys. Microalbumin in the urine is an early sign of diabetic kidney disease.
Help keep the kidneys healthy:
- Keep blood glucose under
control
- Eat healthy
- Cut down on salt
Foot Problems
You can control the more
serious foot problems caused by nerve damage, circulation problems, and
infections that can go along with diabetes. Over half of diabetes-related
amputations can be prevented with regular exams and patient education.
Why are foot problems
associated with diabetes? Nerve damage can cause your child to lose feeling in
your feet. The loss of feeling can sometimes cause a child to walk differently.
This may, in turn, deform or misshape their feet, creating pressure points that
can then turn into blisters, sores, or ulcers. Poor circulation can slow down
the foot's healing.
Checklist for healthy feet:
- Check your child's feet
each day
- Wash feet daily
- Carefully trim toenails
- Don't cut corns or
calluses
- Protect your child's
feet from heat and cold
- Keep children physically
active
Eye and Vision Complications
Diabetic eye disease is a
serious problem that can lead to loss of sight. Keeping your child's blood
glucose level closer to normal can help prevent or delay the onset of diabetic
eye disease. Finding and treating eye problems early can help save your child's
sight.
Even if your child is not
currently experiencing problems, eye disease might be developing. Regular eye
exams are important for catching problems early. You may notice signs of vision
changes, such as having trouble reading, blurred vision or are seeing dark
spots, flashing lights or rings around lights. Be sure to tell your child's eye
doctor about any problems you may notice.
Vision-correcting glasses
may help correct low or poor vision. Surgery can help save sight for people
with advanced diabetic eye disease.
Make sure your child:
- Gets regular check ups
at the eye doctor
- Stays active
- Keeps the blood pressure
under control
- Monitors blood glucose and
knows how to keep it under control
Nerve Complications
Diabetic nerve damage is a
problem for many people with diabetes. Over time, high blood glucose levels
damage the delicate coating of nerves. Nerve damage can cause many problems,
including foot pain.
If your child is
experiencing pain, burning, tingling, or loss of feeling in the feet and hands,
these may be signs of nerve damage. Nerve damage can also cause them to sweat
abnormally and make them feel light-headed when standing up.
Some children may develop
problems swallowing and keeping food down. If your child is having bowel or
urination problems, tell the doctor. Nerve damage can lead to bladder and
kidney infections.
Prevent nerve damage:
- Check feet for changes
- Get tested for nerve
damage
- Continue physical
activity
- Keep blood glucose under
control
Skin Complications
Up to one out of three
people with diabetes will have a skin disorder caused or affected by diabetes.
Such problems may be the first sign they have diabetes. If caught early enough,
most skin conditions can be prevented or easily treated.
Having diabetes puts your
child at a greater risk of developing common skin conditions in addition to
conditions that only affect people with diabetes.
You might see your child
experience several kinds of
bacterial infections. Styes are infections
of the glands of the eyelid. Boils, infections of the hair follicles, and
carbuncles, deep infections of the skin and the tissue, may also occur.
Inflamed tissues are
usually hot, swollen, red, and painful. Thanks to antibiotics and better
control of blood sugar, doctors are better able to treat bacterial infections
in people who have diabetes.
Yeast-like
fungus
can create itchy rashes of moist, red areas surrounded by tiny blisters and scales.
These infections often occur in warm, moist folds of the skin, like armpits and
between fingers and toes.
Common fungal infections
include jock itch, athlete's foot, and ring-shaped itchy patches called
ringworm. Curing fungal infections requires prescription medicine.
Itching is often a symptom of diabetes. It can be caused
by a yeast infection, dry skin, or poor circulation. The itchiest areas may be
the lower parts of the legs when poor circulation is the cause.
You may be able to treat
your child's itching yourself by using mild soap with moisturizer and apply
skin cream after bathing.
Good skin care:
- Keep skin clean and dry
- Avoid very hot baths and
showers
- Moisturize dry skin
- Treat minor cuts right
away
- See a doctor right away
for major cuts, burns or infections
- Keep your home more
humid during cold, dry months
- See a dermatologist
about any skin problems
- Teach your child to take
good care of their feet
