July 1, 2002
Hypoglycemia
Question from Ireland:
We have seen it stated that a child who had hypoglycaemia severe enough to cause brain damage would not get out of it without medical intervention, but our medical expert said this was incorrect. Does asymptomatic hypoglycaemia cause brain damage? If it did, would the infant then return to normal and behave like a normal infant without medical intervention?
Answer:
A lot depends on why the child is prone to hypoglycaemia. If it is due to a metabolic disorder, then prolonged hypoglycaemia can indeed cause brain damage, as in this case the body is unable to mobilise alternative stores, and by products are toxic. If hypoglycaemia occurs in diabetes, significant brain damage is extremely rare, and unlikely to occur. In ketotic hypoglycemia, it is very unusual to cause brain damage as the body mobilises other energy stores.
JS
