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Organ damage from (pre-)diabetes

Lucie

I am no expert but some of your points sound familiar to me

When I bleed, I bleed like a pig.

I have CKD which sometimes goes hand in hand with diabetes, I always show too much protein in my kidney function test

And I have background retinopathy and sometimes (not always) see black spots in my vision as you describe

In winter my hands and feet really feel the cold with the back of my hands going purple I don't know for certain if this is attributed to poor circulation or an effect from diabetes, I do suffer from aching lower legs and feet and I have noticed my walking pace has slowed down a lot, also sometimes a slight puffiness around both ankles from time to time

Like I say I am no expert
 
SweetLucie said:
Some manifestations

1. I see tiny black spots, clouds swimming in my eyes. The don't impact my viewing but they are always visible. Is it possible that this spots, clouds, flares are caused by my damaged breakable capillaries? My eyes seem to suffer from conjunctivitis most of the year due to suspected allergy issues. The conjunctivitis does respond to antibiotics, mainly Gentamycin but does return shortly after ending the treatment.

2. Whenever my skin gets cut, I'm bleeding massively, a tiny scratch from a rose thorn makes my blood running down in a little stream so my shoe became wet and cold, noticed it too late because I didn't feel the pain. Little surgery above my eyebrow caused a plate sized blood patch on my t-shirt and jeans ( it was done me sitting ). Removing a infusion cannula in the hospital caused the nurse covered by a pulsating fountain of blood and the doctor rushed in to stop it. Discussing it with the medical help line I got told that my capillaries are very likely very breakable caused by diabetes side effects.

3. I have issues with my toes and fingers. I lost money notes because I did not feel holding or loosing them. Money was gone while walking and holding it between my fingers. Usually we are controlling sandals with adjusted movements of our toes, so the sandals do stay on our feet. Sometimes it's hard for me to manage that, I don't feel it. Neuropathy I guess…

4. Kidney test, microalbuminuria test is positive. Result is not too bad but the damage started.

So my question is, officially treated as diabetic and being on insulin since January 2014, the time before seen as pre diabetic without medication, is it possible that while pre diabetic over quite a period of time all this damage could be manifested already?
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I'm no expert either but I wonder if you have a disorder making it easier for you to bleed, which may or may not be related to diabetes. I think there is a blood test they can do for clotting factor, and if your blood doesn't clot fast enough there is medication they can give you? Might be something to ask about. If you ever need surgery I think they would test for this first.
 
Hello. I must admit I bleed profusely too. And if I scratch my self I get very deep red marks on my skin. I have put it down to having to take a small amount of aspirin each day. I wonder if it's a mixture of the aspirin and diabetes.
 
Even a small dose of asprin can cause me to bleed more easily and profusely even 2 days after taking the dose and gives me mild tinitus for a day or so.
 
@SweetLucie, can I ask if you've had your eyes examined lately and did they pick up any changes in your eyes (background retinopathy).
 
If I were getting those eye symptoms I would get myself to an optician who can photograph your eyes pronto so that you can be assessed and referred if necessary. Can be quicker than asking GP for a referral to consultant for some reason.

I'm on Aspirin because it was Best Practice in 2007, (these days Best Practice is a statin according to my GP) and finger-pricking can make me bleed like crazy. If you aren't on aspirin or any other anti-coagulant suggest you ask GP for blood test.

Consultant told me that people with diabetes should not wear open-toed shoes or sandals as they don't offer enough protection for the feet. Have you had a visit to podiatry clinic ? They can tell you whether the circulation in your feet and legs is good and any precautions you can take eg diabetic socks.
 
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