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Flu and ineffective insulin

O

Opossum

Member
Messages
19
Type of diabetes
Parent
Treatment type
Insulin
My 5yo T1 daughter started having flu-like symptoms (high temperature,...) yesterday and her sugars skyrocketed from that moment on. She can not get below 10. I consulted doctor and she advised to increase humulin R before meals, but amounts i have increased did not help in a satisfactory fashion.
My question is related to readings of ketones and glucose in her urine. They are both high, and I interpret that as i should increase insulin shots (insulin is ineffective). Does my interpretation make sense?
Does that mean that while she is sick she stopped producing her own insulin or that her body is rejecting insulin i am injecting?
Note that she had been diagnosed 10 months ago and she is (was?) in honeymoon period, so she normally does not inject big amounts of insulin (3,5 units of humulin R/5,5 units of humulin N in the morning and 0,5 of R and 0,5 of N in the evening)

Thank you for the opinion and further advices will be appreciated
 
Hiya I'm type 1 (since age 2 35 yrs!) and my 2yr old diagnosed type1.
My mum always said she had to increase my insulin quite a bit when I was ill and my daughter has had terrible flu like illness recently so her insulin has gone up.
To reduce ketones you need to give extra insulin-is your daughter eating much? Just try to keep her hydrated at least -you can always give juice or lucozade if necessary and test a lot if you are increasing her insulin. You can always give her a jelly cube to suck if she goes a bit low. Plain things like rich teas to suck on always helped me when I was young. Have you tried an extra half unit of short acting-what does that do?
It's the illness that the immune system is fighting off -not that the insulin is ineffective it's just got more work to do if that makes sense!
It's a double whammy when you are diabetic and not well unfortunately!
Watch out for when she starts to get better you will need to reduce insulin back.
 
Sadly, @Opossum, when ill, our blood sugars increase as a result of the effects of hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline which have a double effect. It increases the amount of glucose produced and reduces the effect of insulin.

All you can really do in the circumstances is monitor carefully and take more insulin. Sick day rules should normally be followed, as detailed below:


If you are unsure what to do, contact your DSN.
 

If she has high ketones and high blood sugar you're always best phoning for further advice, especially for a child.
 
Fortunately, we misinterpreted ketones reading. They are not high, which makes situation more understandable.
Thank you all for educational responses.
 
Hi, I am back again few days later. Her illness symptoms have ended but increased need for insulin remains. What are your experiences how long can that take?
Other possibility is, as I have explained, that she is exiting her honeymoon and pancrea is not the same after illness.
 
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