First aid for diabetes mellitus: how to help children and adults with types 1 and 2 diabetes?

First aid for diabetes is the most important point, especially during a critical condition. For pathology, a characteristic feature is a violation of the water and salt balance in the body, as well as a disorder in the ratio of nutrients in the body (minerals, salts, carbohydrates).

Emergencies in diabetes mellitus urgently require medical intervention. Due to a sharp decrease in patients, their well-being worsens, symptoms develop: severe thirst, headache, weakness, dryness in the mouth.

With a significant increase in the concentration of glucose in the blood, the patient needs to inject insulin. The patient should know what dose he needs, and it is always recommended on an individual basis.

It is necessary to consider what is first aid for a diabetic, and how to help with a diabetic coma? What if the case is really urgent, and how to prevent serious complications?

How can we help diabetics?

When a patient’s blood sugar concentration sharply decreases, trembling is observed in the body, severe dizziness begins. In a severe form of the disease, the patient’s visual perception may be impaired. After measuring blood sugar, and confirming its low values, the person should be given carbohydrates.

The easiest way to do this is through food products that include easily digestible carbohydrates. It can be a cube of refined sugar, a small amount of honey, juice. You can give a drug with glucose or inject it with it.

In type 2 diabetes mellitus, after these actions, you need to control blood sugar after all measures to increase it. In a situation where the need requires it, you need to control it every hour.

First aid should be provided in emergency situations. For example, if a person falls on the street, you do not need to perceive him as an alcoholic, or another person who is “to blame” or something else. It is possible that his position is based on serious pathology. In case of loss of consciousness, doctors must be called.

In medical practice, an excess of sugar is called hyperglycemia, and a decrease in sugar is called hypoglycemia. Hyperglycemia is characterized by the following symptoms:

  • Dryness in the mouth.
  • Frequent urination.
  • The person is constantly hungry.
  • Visual impairment.
  • Nervous irritation.
  • An attack of nausea, apathy and weakness.

Hypoglycemia, that is, a sharp decrease in glucose concentration leads to a rapid heartbeat, weakness, drowsiness, dizziness and headache. Double vision, impaired coordination of movements.

In a number of situations, a critical decrease in sugar can be characterized by nervous excitability, anxiety and euphoria, and from the outside, such a person’s behavior may seem inappropriate behavior.

First aid

First aid for type 1 diabetes is a decrease in glucose in the human body. For this, the introduction of a small dosage of the hormone is used. Typically, it ranges from one to two units.

After a relatively short period of time, the sugar should be measured. If the indicators have not changed, it is required to introduce another dose of insulin in order to exclude severe complications and the development of hypoglycemia.

If the patient has a history of type 1 diabetes mellitus, then an attack of vomiting is not necessarily a consequence of the underlying disease. First, sugar indicators are necessarily recognized, and only then an injection can be given.

If the patient begins to vomit profusely, then this condition threatens with serious dehydration of the body, in this case it is recommended to consume as many fluids as possible:

  1. Mineral water helps to replenish the lack of salts in the body.
  2. Tea.
  3. Plain water.

It is advisable to note that with severe vomiting in children with diabetes mellitus, help should be provided in a timely manner. Otherwise, the risk of developing probable complications increases, respectively, there will be long-term treatment.

It is known that against the background of type 1 and 2 diabetes mellitus, the wound surfaces in patients slowly heal. What kind of diabetes care should be given in this case? You need to do the following:

  • Treat the wound with an antiseptic medicine.
  • Apply a gauze bandage, which must be changed three times a day.
  • To exclude a violation of blood flow, it is not made too tight.

In a situation where the condition of the wound only worsens, purulent processes are observed, then you need to use ointments that will relieve pain and swelling, help draw out excess fluid from the affected area.

Diabetic ketoacidosis: how to help?

Diabetic ketoacidosis is a complication of the underlying pathology with a large increase in blood sugar. The disease develops due to the fact that the body lacks the hormone insulin, and this occurs against the background of infections, injuries or after surgery.

This condition can also develop as a consequence of inadequate treatment of diabetes mellitus, most often with type 1 of the disease.

In this case, the body significantly increases glucose, there is a lack of energy, which the body draws from the breakdown of fatty acids. As a result, ketone bodies are formed , which have a toxic effect. 

The symptoms of this condition are as follows:

  1. A sharp increase in sugar in the body.
  2. Headache.
  3. The skin is too dry.
  4. The urine smells unpleasant.
  5. An attack of nausea, up to vomiting.
  6. Sharp pain syndrome in the abdomen.

In this case, first aid should be aimed at replenishing the lack of fluid in the patient’s body. In a hospital setting, drugs are administered through a dropper.

After medical supervision establishes a decrease in blood sugar, glucose droppers are recommended.

The treatment of the child and adult continues until the ketone bodies disappear from the body.

Providing care for diabetic coma

Diabetic coma is a serious complication of diabetes mellitus, as a rule, the first, rather than the second, type of disease is most often affected by this condition. It occurs as a consequence of high blood sugar and low insulin levels.

The conventional wisdom is that a diabetic coma is precisely an increase in blood glucose. But in reality, it is hypoglycemic, hyperosmolar, and ketoacidotic.

A hypoglycemic state is most often observed in patients with the first type of the disease, although it also happens in patients who take the drug in tablets. Usually, the development of such a phenomenon is preceded by a sharp increase in the hormone in the body. The danger of such a complication is damage to the brain and central nervous system.

Emergency care for diabetes mellitus in this case is as follows:

  • For mild symptoms: A small lump of sugar is the best remedy.
  • For severe symptoms: pour warm sweet tea to the patient; to exclude a sharp compression of the jaws, insert the retainer; depending on the improvement, feed the patient with a carbohydrate-fortified meal.

After the ability to stop the hypoglycemic reaction of the body on its own, it is necessary to consult a doctor. Many patients are interested in whether it is possible not to consult a doctor, because the crisis condition has passed? No, it is impossible, since it is the doctor who will help to establish the causes of such a complication, and will correct further therapy.

If a hyperglycemic coma develops with loss of consciousness, but you cannot do without immediate medical attention. It is necessary to call doctors as soon as possible, and at this time to inject a person with 40-50 ml of glucose intravenously.  

Help with hyperosmolar coma:

  1. Position the patient correctly.
  2. Eliminate tongue sinking.
  3. Adjust blood pressure.
  4. Intravenous glucose (no more than 20 ml).

If there is an acute intoxication of the body, an ambulance team should be called.

Will a person without medical education be able to determine the type of diabetic coma? Most likely not, if only one in a million guesses, nothing more. Therefore, there are certain rules for help that can be followed with an unidentified type of coma:

  • Call the medics.
  • Injection of the hormone into the muscle in addition to the main dosage.
  • Increasing the insulin dose in the morning.
  • Streamline the consumption of carbohydrates, eliminate the consumption of fats.
  • If you are confused, using an enema with a baking soda solution will help.
  • Give mineral water to a diabetic.

When a family has household members with a history of diabetes mellitus, each family member should know the first aid rules. It is this knowledge that will help not to create a critical situation, exclude complications, and save the patient’s life.

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that, unfortunately, cannot be eliminated. But with the proper approach to treatment, following all the recommendations of the attending physician, adhering to the necessary diet, a diabetic can live a full life without fear of complications.

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