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What happened? What do I have?

MForge

Newbie
Messages
4
Type of diabetes
Don't have diabetes
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
Hi everyone!

I’m awfully sorry to bother but I was perhaps wondering if I could ask you all for some advice, regarding myself, being critically ill with ketoacidosis about six months ago.

I do understand that you may not be able to give me specific individual advice, however anything such as guidance in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.

By way of introduction I have a severe unknown disability, consequently making me electric wheelchair bound and unable to walk. I am 36 years of age.

I was abroad six months ago where I became very unwell, fatigue, dizzy and burning muscles. In the past, I have often had these periods of feeling unwell and thinking nothing of it, I had a glass of red wine and a meal.

Within fifteen minutes of this meal, I became violently sick and I could not stop vomiting where, four hours later, I was taken to A&E via ambulance. A&E identified that my white blood cells were raised, dehydration and my ECG was not correct. A CT scan at A&E did not show any blockage in the stomach or kidney failure.

I was then moved to a high dependency unit and within three hours of staying there my breathing became laboured, kidney function was starting to fail and I was completely out of it. Suddenly, there was a panic between doctors and nurses and I was rushed to ICU fighting for my life.

I had a critical level of ketones at 14, which was causing ketoacidosis, turning my blood acidic. I stayed five days in ICU where I was administered all types of life-saving drugs including glucose to reduce my ketone level.

During my period at ICU, I was extensively tested for diabetes and results came back stating that I was not diabetic. The doctors were baffled as to how quick, I got to that critical level of ketoacidosis and how long it took my body to recover.

My recovery over the past six months has been slow. I still get severe pains in my kidneys, feeling tired, visual disturbances such as flashing floaters and brain fog.

I was perhaps wondering if you could advise on any tests to investigate this ketoacidosis experience? Furthermore, perhaps any consultants that you can recommend who may have an interest in my case?

I have always had incidences where I have been very unwell, my joints and muscles burning, kidney pain, and then often a urine analysis sample would indicate that I have ketones. However, any diabetic test that I have done in the past has never stated that I am not diabetic.

Recently, I purchased a glucose blood monitoring device which also measures ketones. Since my ICU adventure, I have experienced recurring periods of being unwell as described previously and my ketone level was at 0.6 increasing to 1.1 within an hour.

I of course went to my GP on returning back to the UK but they put it down as a one off experience. I keep on explaining to my GP about my repeated ketone level increase documented via the monitor, but again they are not bothered.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Kind regards,

Mike F
 
Welcome to the forum,

As you will have noticed when you agreed to the forum rules members are not allowed to make any form of medical diagnosis or recommend medical consultants. This comes under forum rule A11

11. Important: Members are generally not Health Care Professionals, and those who are participate on the Forum as Members, not Health Care Professionals. Members are unable to diagnose any condition, or instruct in the alteration of medication, irrespective of personal or professional standing or experience.

I can however comment on your lost point regarding your home ketone tests. Depending on what you are eating, and when you are eating it can be perfectly normal to have this level of ketones in your blood. This is called dietary keto sis and is a normal phenomenon under certain circumstance, far example when fasting or eating a low carb diet. It is completely different from ketoacidosis where the levels of ketones are much higher.
 
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