October 7, 2000
Hypoglycemia
Question from Petaluma, California, USA:
My 20 year old daughter has had type�1� diabetes for a year and one-half. Recently, she had a severe sugar low which included unconsciousness and seizures. The law says she’s an adult and is in charge of her own care. We are trying to respect that and acknowledge that she is an adult. How do parents help here? How do we stay informed about what to do in case of emergencies? How dangerous are lows with unconsciousness and seizures? This happened at night. What if she were alone? What can we do?
Answer:
Hypos, at any age, are frightening to the patient and the observer, whether parent or friend or spouse. Someone has to know how to treat a low, no matter the relationship. Glucagon, gel, etc., are all essentials for significant others.
Hypos can kill. I don’t mean to scare, but it is the truth. They usually don’t and merely affect the patient for a few hours. In young children, we do worry more about the developing brain. Hypos at night are a serious issue and should be discussed with the team. There are a lot of different strategies, timing of food, insulin, etc., that can be used.
LD
