diabetes

diabetes (dy-ă-bee-teez) n. any disorder of metabolism causing excessive thirst and the production of large volumes of urine. d. insipidus a rare form of diabetes that is due to deficiency of the pituitary hormone vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone). d. mellitus (DM) a disorder of carbohydrate metabolism in which sugars in the body are not oxidized to produce energy due to lack of the pancreatic hormone insulin. The accumulation of sugar leads to its appearance in the blood (hyperglycaemia), then in the urine; symptoms include thirst, loss of weight, and the excessive production of urine. The use of fats as an alternative source of energy leads to disturbances of the acid-base balance and ketosis (see (diabetic) ketoacidosis) and eventually to diabetic coma. The diet must be controlled, with adequate carbohydrate for the body's needs; lack of balance in the diet leads to hypoglycaemia. In type 1 (or insulin-dependent) d. mellitus, which usually starts in childhood or adolescence, patients are entirely dependent on injections of insulin for survival. In type 2 (noninsulin-dependent or maturity-onset) d. mellitus, either the pancreas retains some ability to produce insulin, but this is inadequate for the body's needs, or the body becomes resistant to the effects of insulin; oral hypoglycaemic drugs or insulin may be required. Type 2 diabetes usually occurs after the age of 40, but a rare form, maturity-onset d. of the young (MODY), develops in people under 25. gestational d. diabetes mellitus or impaired glucose tolerance that is diagnosed during pregnancy.
—diabetic (dy-ă-bet-ik) adj., n.www.diabetes.org.uk Website of Diabetes UK