Diabetes

Diabetes mellitus, often simply diabetes, is a syndrome characterized by disordered metabolism and inappropriately high blood sugar (hyperglycemia) resulting from either low levels of the hormone insulin or from abnormal resistance to insulin's effects coupled with inadequate levels of insulin secretion to compensate.

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See also:

Health & Medicine

• Diabetes
• Hypertension
• Hormone Disorders
• Diseases and Conditions
• Personalized Medicine
• Chronic Illness

The characteristic symptoms are excessive urine production (polyuria), excessive thirst and increased fluid intake (polydipsia), and blurred vision; these symptoms may be absent if the blood sugar is mildly elevated. Prolonged high blood glucose causes glucose absorption, which leads to changes in the shape of the lenses of the eyes, resulting in vision changes.
Blurred vision is a common complaint leading to a diabetes diagnosis; type 1 should always be suspected in cases of rapid vision change whereas type 2 is generally more gradual, but should still be suspected. The World Health Organization recognizes three main forms of diabetes mellitus: type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes (occurring during pregnancy), which have similar signs, symptoms, and consequences, but different causes and population distributions.
Ultimately, all forms are due to the beta cells of the pancreas being unable to produce sufficient insulin to prevent hyperglycemia.
Type 1 diabetes is usually due to autoimmune destruction of the pancreatic beta cells, which produce insulin.
Type 2 diabetes is characterized by insulin resistance in target tissues, but some impairment of beta cell function is necessary for its development.
Gestational diabetes is similar to type 2 diabetes, in that it involves insulin resistance; the hormones of pregnancy can cause insulin resistance in women genetically predisposed to developing this condition.
For more information about the topic Diabetes, read the full article at Wikipedia.org, or see the following related articles:

Blood sugar — In medicine, blood sugar is a term used to refer to levels of glucose in the blood. Blood sugar concentration, or serum glucose level, is tightly ...  > read more

Hyperglycemia — Hyperglycemia or High Blood Sugar is a condition in which an excessive amount of glucose circulates in the blood plasma. Hyperglycemia is one of the ...  > read more

Diabetes mellitus type 2 — Diabetes mellitus type 2 (formerly called diabetes mellitus type II, non-insulin-dependent diabetes, NIDDM or adult-onset diabetes) is a long-term ...  > read more

Diabetes mellitus type 1 — Type 1 diabetes (formerly known as "childhood" or "juvenile" diabetes or "insulin dependent" diabetes) is most commonly diagnosed in children and ...  > read more