To be sick with worry than DS (12) may have diabetes!

[HumiditySucks]

Please help calm me down until I can get a GP appointment this afternoon.

DS 12 has started drinking a lot more water, saying he feels thirsty. Started about 3 weeks ago while abroad. Obviously it’s hot but this is more than that.

He’s also lost a lost a lot of weight on his stomach. That may be him shooting up in height but he wasn’t over weight before.

Also saying he feels more tired but that could be due to being up until early hours of the morning 😡and sleeping rhythm messed up.

Noticed last night his breath has a chemical smell like acetone.

No Type 1 diabetes in families. MIL was diagnosed in her late 60’s with Type 2.

GP had no appointments by the time I got through this morning so have to try again at 2pm. Aarghhh!

Suspected type 1 is a medical emergency. Take him to A &e. My sister exhibited similar symptoms at 14 very tired after school, would fall asleep when she got home, increased thirst. and her periods stopped.My mum suspected type 1 diabetes even though we have a family history of type 2. She was written off as one of those mums and my sister was asked if she would like to speak to the Dr alone or if she was being bullied. My mum then rang and asked for a second opinion the following day, the Gp did bloods and within an hour or two she was asked to take her straight to A &e. She very nearly died.

A&E is completely appropriate. T1 and mum to a T1. Please just go - there are enough symptoms, they will finger prick in triage and appropriate care can be given whatever it is.

You can't turn up at A&E and say I think my son has diabetes, it is not appropriate

it’s an emergency, if not seen quickly enough the child will end up in DKA, fall into a coma or worse. My son was in hospital for 7 nights when diagnosed. It is life-threatening.

Hope all is OK, OP. Get him seen ASAP.

@Ducksurprise yes you can when the patient is undiagnosed and a child. Most will be diagnosed in a&e extremely unwell.

If in doubt about A&E (which is where you should go) nip to the chemist and buy a £10 glucose meter job and test it asap.

You can't turn up at A&E and say I think my son has diabetes, it is not appropriate

It absolutely is appropriate and it is an emergency. My daughter ended up in the ICU with DKA after being fobbed off by the GP's. She almost died.

Go to A&E op, utter nonsense that suspected T1 is not worthy of an A&E visit. You don't need to call 111 prior to A&E. He will be triaged and if they suspect T1 he will be prioritised.

I'm reporting the A&E not appropriate advice, it's dangerous.

You can absolutely go to A&E with suspected T1 diabetes. Especially in a child. Untreated T1 can escalate very quickly to become extremely serious. OP, I’d go to A&E

(And I’m echoing the posters who are saying that advising AGAINST A&E is dangerous. I’ve cared for more patients with DKA than I care to remember. Loathe this stupid “it’s neither and accident nor an emergency” bollocks)

So much wrong information. You can absolutely turn up to a&e and will get seen if you suspect he could be diabetic and can’t get an urgent gp appointment. He could go into DKA which is dangerous.

My son was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, he was ill with DKA (Diabetic Ketoacidosis). This is an emergency and time matters. You might be wrong but don't take any risks. Take him to the hospital. I phoned 101, a paramedic came out and assessed him, and then ordered an ambulance.

Alternatively - does your GP have an "emergency" phone line you can call? So not the general/appointments line? Ours does. I only called it once when DD was a baby and was scalded by hot tea (thanks MIL). Called GP emergncy line, straight through to the duty GP who advised how best to deal/reassured me I was doing all the right things. This is exactly what it is for.

In your situation they could triage him to come for test - and/or arrange for you to be seen immediately at the hospital.

If he has diabetes type I it is an emergency. So either a&e or ship up at your doctor's surgery with him and insist they check his urine. Either way he must be seen today.

I’m type 1, like others have said please go to A&E if you aren’t there already, in my experience GP care for type 1 diabetics isn’t great at the GP.

If he is diabetic there are lots of resources available, the only thing I would be careful
of is the NHS’ diet advice, some trusts (including my own) are still giving innapropriate diet advice, such as eating fat free yoghurts, despite many of these being high in sugar.

Type 1 diabetes is so much easier to manage that it was even ten years ago, yes it is a bit of a pain in the arse and if you get a cold etc you are more ill. But it no longer stops you doing anything, I’ve just taken part in an international sporting competition and won, it really doesn’t take your freedom away anymore. I would also be wary of looking at life expectancy stats, yes ours is a bit lower, but current stats are very very out of date and obviously include people who choose not to manage their diabetes appropriately and people who die of non-diabetes related issues.

What does his urine smell like? (Gross I know)

T1 here. Go to A&E. He needs urgent treatment. Don't sit there worrying - just go to A&E.

Im an acute medical recieving nurse. If you smell acetone breath get to A&E, they will test his blood glucose as part of the triage and you'll know very soon. Even if anyone does argue that GP would be more appropriate (they wont) they have to triage and you'll be in the right place because even though he probably looks fairly well acetone breath can be sign of DKA which often requires critical care. I'm hoping you are already there and he's doing well.

Yes a&e. I am a nurse there. Don't hang about Simple finger prick test will tell you. Local pharmacist may be able to do one for him instantly.

Yes a&e. I am a nurse there. Don't hang about Simple finger prick test will tell you. Local pharmacist may be able to do one for him instantly.

If a pharmacist can do it why would you encourage A&E? It makes no sense.

One of my children has Type 1 and the symptoms you have described sound like a DKA if it’s diabetes- he could deteriorate very quickly and end up in a coma or worse if you don’t get seen now. Take an overnight bag for you and him and head straight to A&E- if it is diabetes you will need to stay in hospital for a couple of nights.

Because he would need to stay in hospital for a few nights if it was diabetes- the pharmacist would just send him to A&E anyway, so better to just go straight to A&E.

A&e. It's scary I know but it's very routine for the doctors. Have several diabetic friends - generally they had a virus just before diagnosis (which affected their pancreas) has your son been ill?

Good luck OP. T1 can be very serious if not treated properly so I’d take him to A&E.

Because he would need to stay in hospital for a few nights if it was diabetes- the pharmacist would just send him to A&E anyway, so better to just go straight to A&E.

And if it's not diabetes he wouldn't need to be in A&E so if it's avoidable to use A&E and still get quick help that's what we should do.

Definitely agree with the PP - he needs to be seen urgently. He may be ok and the symptoms down to the weather, adolescent development or a virus, but if he does have diabetes, nowadays it can be very well managed and diabetics can live healthy, fulfilled lives, do sport, and manage their conditions well. My friend has a sensor on his arm which he can read with his phone, meaning he doesn't have to finger prick many times a day and it is a game changer.