December 11, 2002
Sick Days
Question from Welches, Oregon, USA:
My 10 year old daughter, who has had type 1 diabetes for almost four years, recently switched from injections to an insulin pump, and her transition to the pump has been rough due to illnesses every three to four weeks. In the interim, she has near normal blood sugars, even overnight. She has received flu shots regularly since diagnosis and used to get the same number of illnesses as our other children, but over the past year, she has caught everything that has gone around, even while her siblings remain healthy.
Every month she has something that causes high blood sugars and ketones, we work closely with our diabetes team especially when dealing with high blood sugars and ketones, and we aim for good control. Our pediatrician told us that lately there seems to be an onslaught of new colds and viruses, and many kids who weren’t sick before are getting sick while they build up immunities to the new strands. We are wondering if her number of illnesses are within reason or if there is something else we should look into.
Another side affect which she has that with the higher blood sugars she often has accidents at night. Over the past year, we and she have had many sleepless nights dealing with illnesses, highs and ketones. We’re all tired and are looking for some answers. Thank you for anything you can share with us.
Answer:
It is possible that your child is unfortunate enough to be getting frequent viruses, and it can be due to the fact that she has not been exposed to these before. However, it is worth at least bearing in mind possible reasons. One possibility is that your child has developed another hormone problem, such as adrenal insufficiency. This can be difficult to pick up and can result in frequent trivial illnesses which can take longer to get rid of. It may be worth your diabetes team at least considering this. Otherwise, it is likely your child will mature from these problems.
JS
