Diabetes mellitus:More commonly referred to as "diabetes" -- achronic diseaseassociated with abnormally high levels of thesugarglucoseintheblood.Diabetesis due to one of two mechanisms:
- Inadequate production ofinsulin(which is made by thepancreasand lowersblood glucose), or
- Inadequatesensitivityof cells to the action of insulin.
The two main types ofdiabetescorrespond to these two mechanisms and are called insulin dependent (type 1) and non-insulin dependent (type 2) diabetes. In type 1 diabetes there is no insulin or not enough of it. In type 2 diabetes, there is generally enough insulin but the cells upon which it should act are not normally sensitive to its action.
The signs and symptoms of both types of diabetes include increasedurineoutput and decreased appetite as well as fatigue. Diabetes is diagnosed by blood glucose testing, the glucose tolerance test, and testing of the level of glycosylated hemoglobin (glycohemoglobin或糖化血红蛋白)。治疗方式取决于on the type of the diabetes.
Themajorcomplications of diabetes include dangerously elevated bloodsugar, abnormally low blood sugar due to diabetes medications, anddiseaseof the blood vessels which can damage the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart.
