Ketoacidosis

Being sick increases your child's risk of getting diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), particularly if she's throwing up. People with diabetes get DKA when they have high blood glucose, not enough insulin, and high ketones. DKA can make your child even sicker than the illness she already has! If you think your child has DKA, call her doctor immediately.

When to Call the Doctor

Your child may have both a pediatrician and a diabetes doctor. In general, call the pediatrician if you have questions about your child's illness that don't have much to do with her diabetes, or if your child has been sick for two or three days. Call the diabetes doctor if you have questions about how to treat diabetes or if your child shows signs of DKA. Also call the diabetes doctor if your child has one or more of the following symptoms:

• Vomiting or has diarrhea for more than 6 hours
• Moderate to large amounts of ketones in her urine
• Blood glucose over 240 mg/dL, even after several supplemental insulin doses
• Signs of hyperglycemia or DKA
• Very low blood glucose

Be ready to tell the doctor the following information:

• How long your child has been sick
• Her blood glucose and ketone results
• What medications she has taken, including insulin and over-the-counter medicines
• Her temperature
• How much she's been able to eat and drink
• Her symptoms
• The phone number of your pharmacist