January 15, 2000
Diagnosis and Symptoms
Question from Seaford, New York, USA:
My 11 year old son has Type 1 diabetes. My 8 year old daughter had a physical and the doctor said she had trace glucose in her urine. She had a Yoo-Hoo and bagel for breakfast. I checked her sugar on my son’s meter; it was 107. I also dipped her urine for sugar and got a negative result. I will continue to dip her urine for several days. Any reasons for the trace glucose? My son had sugar in his urine 6 months before he was diagnosed. I had a fasting glucose done on him when they discovered sugar in his urine and that reading was also normal (although his level in his urine was quite large). Does this mean that my daughter will most likely develop diabetes down the road?
Answer:
There can be various reasons for having glucose in urine other than diabetes, and it is relatively common in children. In itself it does not imply that she will develop diabetes but I think you are being a concerned parent in keeping an eye on her urine and blood glucose on occasion. In children, if they are asymptomatic, it is unlikely that glucose in the urine is suggestive of diabetes.
JS