Be cautious of blood sugar level as pandemic shown to induce diabetes, say experts

 This is particularly relevant this World Diabetes Day that is falling on Saturday. 

“Keeping diabetes mellitus under control is the best healthcare strategy for diabetic patients at the time of this pandemic, as more than 70 per cent of the people who succumbed to the infection in India either had diabetes or both diabetes and hypertension,” pointed out Dr CR Mahesh Babu, consultant, Department of Diabetology, Meenakshi Mission Hospital and Research Centre.

 The doctor added that an estimated 50 per cent of the diabetic patients who lost their lives to the infection had poorly managed diabetes.

 Besides leading to deaths, a large number of recovered patients in Tamil Nadu have witnessed disruption in blood sugar levels, while many of them have been diagnosed with diabetes.

 Though it has not yet been established exactly as to how COVID-19 infection makes people diabetic, the medical community believes that it was the result of the damage caused to the pancreatic beta cells, which in turn compromises the secretion of insulin.

 “A large number of patients are coming with new cases of diabetes. There can be several factors responsible for it such as lack of identification of changes in the blood sugar levels, medications given for COVID-19 treatment or steroids to strengthen the immunity leading to the development of new cases of diabetes. The follow-up clinics at the hospitals in the city are looking into these cases,” said Dr E Theranirajan, Dean, Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital.