What Is Diabetic Ketoacidosis?
Diabetic ketoacidosis is a life-threatening complication of diabetes. Although it mostly occurs in type 1 diabetics, it can also occur in type 2 diabetics. The symptoms usually begin rapidly and can be triggered by infection, stroke, not taking insulin correctly, and medications such as steroids.
Diabetic ketoacidosis results due to an insulin shortage, which causes the body to burn fatty acids. This leads to the production of acidic ketone bodies. It can be defined as having serum concentration of more than 5mEq/L, blood sugar more than 250 mg/dL, and blood pH less than 7.3.
