I am scared to say that I have felt most of the symptoms of DKA....my question is, how do you know if you have it? I do take my health very seriously, however I don't want to rush to the ER because of intense thirst, high BG and feeling tired. Is vomiting where the line is crossed?
vomiting and large keytones. if you have both GO TO THE HOSPITAL. you can get ketostix at the pharmacy
good luck!
thanks, Joe! that is what I thought but reading so many people's DKA stories made me nervous
Yes, vomitting is the line. By that point, you're body is unlikely to respond to insulin injections due to the large amount of ketones and you need to go to the hospital (call an ambulance) for an IV. High numbers, plus large ketones is called 'ketoacidosis,' and not DKA. Vomitting is the symptom that turns it into DKA, along with thirst, frequent urination, stomachace, high numbers, etc.
yes please check your keytones
my daughter was diagnosed with type 1 and was dka when we took her in to the emergency
we thought she just had the flu
but then became drunk like and smelled fruity
The material I have says the following:
Early symptoms: high blood sugar, nausea, increased thirst/dry mouth, hunger, excess tiredness/ weakness, confusion, abdominal pains, trace/ small ketones.
Late signs: vomiting, severe abdominal pain, rapid breathing, shortness of breath, unconsciousness.
The material also says to go to the ER if late signs are present OR moderate to large amounts of ketones.
I like to call myself a dka expert... i was in and out of the hospital every week a yer ago ... i would say if u start vomiting u def need to go but it wouldnt b a bad thing to g now so maybe they can help u before u go into dka
I don't know about the vomiting thing...when I was 1st dx'd with diabetes I had DKA and had to spend several days in the ICU, but I never vomitted at all. I'm not really much of a puker even when I have the flu, so I don't know if that has something to do with it. I would say that you shouldn't think to yourself, "hmmm...I have all the other symptoms of DKA, but I'm not barfing so I must be ok!" If you are spilling keytones you should put a call into your endo, explain your other symptoms, and see what he or she advises.
If your bloodsugars are comeing up as high and you have large ketones NEVER wait I can say from personal experienced that it is really scary going into DKA but it is way better to go in early than to wait and it be too late
when my son reaches 17 (306) or more we always test for ketones. I thought everyone did that?