What it is:
Hypoglycemia unawareness occurs when a patient has low blood sugar without any symptoms, or he's unable to recognize the early warning signs of this condition. In such cases, he could lose consciousness from low blood sugar without ever experiencing symptoms.
This acute problem is more common in people who have had diabetes for years and in older adults. That's because after about five years following a diabetes diagnosis, the symptoms of low blood sugar tend to fade. After 20 years with the disorder, sometimes symptoms are too subtle to detect, or they occur only after a patient's glucose level has gone too low for too long and he's unable to treat the condition himself. It's also more likely to occur if he has neuropathy (nerve damage) or if he takes certain heart or high blood pressure medicines.
Symptoms:
- Often there are none, hence the name.
- Sometimes while the physical and behavioral signs of low blood sugar aren't apparent, a patient may still detect mental red flags for the condition, such as difficulty concentrating, slowed speech, slowed thinking, or lack of coordination.
How to treat it:
- If he's unconscious, call 911.
- If he's unconscious or unable to swallow, and if he has a glucagon emergency kit and you or another caregiver knows how to use it, give him the injection.
- Otherwise, call his main diabetes doctor and treat as for hypoglycemia.
How to prevent it:
- Keep on the lookout for mental indications of low blood sugar the person you're caring for, and point them out to him so he can stay on top of his condition.
- Make sure he checks his blood glucose on a routine basis.
