Help re sickness bug and ketones please?

[Helpmaboab]

Hello, I'm very new to this so please forgive me if I sound like I don't know what I'm talking about but that's because I actually don't. My son (6) was diagnosed with Type 1 two weeks ago and we're still trying to get over the shock. He has had a sickness bug since yesterday and I've done my best to keep him from going too low. He's been fairly steady at between 4-9 through the night (been testing every 2 hours) and ketones read at 2.0 this morning, had been going up slowly through the night. After his insulin this morning, they have come down and have been between 0.2 and 0.3 all day so far. Sorry for the waffle but I'm still so new to this and have been reading as much as I can on the subject but feel very lost, I decided that if I could not get his ketones down I would take him straight to hospital but they do seem to be stablising now. I did speak to the hospital but there was no one there with specialist knowledge which is a bit of a worry and I didn't find them very helpful.

My main question is regarding ketones. With what I know (which seems to be not very much) the main worry with a sickness type bug is raised ketones and that insulin is what is needed to bring this down. I gave my son a slightly reduced insulin dose this morning and just kept giving him sugary drinks to stop him going to low. My husband believes that if we can get his bloody glucose more normal that the ketones 'will sort themselves out' but I don't think this is the case. I'm not too worried about high blood sugars for a day or so as I know to expect them with an infection, but I am far more worried about ketones as I believe they are the danger. Please can someone tell me if I am wrong and I am doing the wrong thing? Again, sorry for the waffle, I'm just so worred.

 

[hanadr]

I have no experience of diabetic children, but have seen my T1 husband through Many illnesses over 40 years. I admit I wouldn't even test for ketones unless sugars were HIGH. Ketones with low/normal blood glucose are not usually anything to worry about.
I would suggest ringing NHS 24 if this sort of thing happens again. I'm hoping it's resolved itself by now.
In general ketones are not a sign of anything sinister unless accompanied by high sugars. there would probably also be symptoms of confusion and a sweet smell to the breath if ketoacidosis were to be happening. In that case just get to A&E as fast as possible. If symptoms are severe, dial 999.
Hana

 

[serankine]

Hi
We only test my daughters Ketones if she her B.G is 14.0 or over, since she is on the pump before when we were injecting we would test for ketones if her BG was over 17.0.

Leah had a sickness bug the other day and her results were all over the place. It is scary for any parent since you are tring to do the best you can. I still feel really confussed with all the information with diabetes and Leah has been diagnosed for over year now theres just so much to take in.

WhenLeah was ill i tested for ketones when her BG was 'normal' she was showing Ketones but put this down to her being ill. I would worry if the ketones were showing and the BG was high aswell. (this is only a guess)

DO you have a diabetic nurse you could ring on Monday? if your still worried I always ring Leah when im worried or need encouragment im doing the right thing, Since they can offer you more advice and re-assure you.
Hope you and your son are ok.

 

[leggott]

Ketones are produced when the body burns fat for energy or fuel. This can happen when you lose weight or if you are unwell and have not been eating properly. Also if there is not enough insulin to help your body use sugar for energy. Without enough insulin, glucose builds up in the blood. Since the body is unable to use glucose for energy, it breaks down fat instead. When this occurs, ketones form in the blood and spill into the urine. These ketones can make you very sick.

There are situations when you might have ketones without the blood glucose being too high. Positive ketones are not a problem when blood glucose levels are within range, It is a problem if blood glucose levels are high and left untreated.

I would suggest just checking with your DSN tomorrow and in the meantime carry on checking your sons levels through the night and correcting if necessary. Also get him to drink water as this will help flush the ketones away.

 

[Helpmaboab]

Thank you all very much for your replies they have been really informative. My poor son had the most awful diarrhoea last night but his blood levels stayed between 8-10 mmols so I didn't test for ketones this time. He slept quite well and has had lots to drink, woke up at 10.2 mmols and said he was starving so I think we're on the mend. I just wish we' had more time to get used the the diagnosis before having to deal with a horrid bug. Thank you again for all your help, I think this place will be a godsend for me to be honest.

 

[Jen&Khaleb]

Glad things seem to be settling down. I think there is nothing worse than a gastro bug with diabetes. If your child will drink those hydralyte or gastrolyte they will make a big difference in the recovery process. For being so new to diabetes you seemed to have done all the right things. I got myself (and my son) in an awful mess the first time he got sick