Diabetes Mellitus (DM)

What is Diabetes Mellitus? Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is chronic metabolic disorder in which the body does not produce enough insulin or deficiency of insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced in the pancreas, and it is needed to turn sugar and other food into energy.

Type of Diabetus Mellitus :
- Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Type 1 on diabetes mellitus called as insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus [IDDM] or juvenile-onset diabetes, is characterized by loss of the insulin-producing beta cells of the islets of Langerhans of the pancreas leading to a deficiency of insulin. Type 1 diabetes usually occurs in children and young adults in which without daily injections of insulin, people with type 1 diabetes won’t survive.

Till now, type 1 diabetes can be treated only with insulin therapy and this treatment must be continued indefinitely. People with diabetes mellitus Type 1 are needed careful monitoring of blood glucose levels using blood testing monitors. Children with significant dehydration, persistent vomiting, serious intercurrent illness, require inpatient management and intravenous rehydration.

- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
Diabetes mellitus type 2 called as non–insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus [NIDDM] or adult-onset diabetes, this case due to a combination of defective insulin secretion and insulin resistance or reduced insulin sensitivity (defective responsiveness of tissues to insulin) as heterogeneous disorder, which almost certainly involves the insulin receptor in cell membranes.

Diabetes mellitus type 2 is the most common form of diabetes mellitus and is highly associated with a family history of diabetes, older age, obesity and lack of exercise. Diabetes mellitus type 2 appears most often in middle-aged adults.

In some countries, 20% or more of new patients with diabetes in childhood and adolescence have NIDDM, a change associated with increased rates of obesity. Another case is may have inherited disorders of insulin release leading to maturity onset diabetes of the young (MODY).

Diabetes mellitus type 2 usually treated by attempts to change physical activity (generally an increase is desired) such as exercise, the diet as well as to decrease carbohydrate intake, and weight loss. Then the next treatment for diabetes mellitus type 2 is oral antidiabetic drugs (if necessary).


Certain diseases and drugs can affect the way the body uses insulin and can lead to type 2 diabetes. Diabetes can occur temporarily during pregnancy and also may occur in people with excess production of growth hormone (acromegaly) and in people with certain hormone-secreting tumors. Patient with pancreatitis and other diseases that directly damage the pancreas can lead to diabetes mellitus.

Sign and Symptom of Diabetes Mellitus :
Patients with Diabetes Mellitus has possible systemic signs and symptoms include polyuria (increased frequency of urination), polydipsia (increased thirst), polyphagia (increased appetite), glycosuria, weakness, weight loss, neuropathy, and nephropathy, blurred vision, cuts and bruises that are slow to heal.

The early symptoms of diabetes mellitus are related to the direct effects of high blood sugar levels. Normally, blood glucose levels for fasting (at least eight hours but not more than 16 hours) is 4 to 7MMol/L and less than 10MMol/L two hours after meals.

Acute complications on the diabetes mellitus patients may occur Diabetic ketoacidosis , Nonketotic hyperosmolar coma , Hypoglycemia , and Diabetic coma. Chronic complications may appear as Vascular disease (microvascular disease in which due to damage to small blood vessels and Macrovascular disease, due to damage to the arteries).

Others related cases of Diabetes Mellitus are : Diabetic retinopathy, Diabetic neuropathy, Diabetic nephropathy.