To think this is the start of type 1 diabetes

[NeuroSpicyCat]

Hand hold please.

My 13 year old son informed me tonight that he wet the bed last night.

This has never happened before.

His late father had Type 1 diabetes which started around this age.

My son also has a sore tummy (that comes and goes) and sore calves (that come and go).

He seems to have low mood also.

He's always been really thin.

My husband (his stepdad) is driving to A&E with him right now. I’m staying home with the other 4 children. (I can’t drive).

I’m autistic and scared. I’m so worried for him. AI said he is highly likely to be diagnosed given his symptoms and family history, and he’s likely to be urgently admitted to hospital.

Has anyone been in a similar situation?

If you think OP took her child to A&E simply for bed wetting then you either haven’t read or haven’t understood her concerns. And you also missed the fact that he was triaged and it was judged necessary for him to wait and see a doctor.

I think I’d have immediately thought wet dream if my 13 son told me they’d wet the bed.

Any update @NeuroSpicyCat ?

Ignore any nasty comments ... really hope your son is ok

I have read and understood her concerns. They are based on AI. It also says the blood sugar test was negative. The lack of update is probably telling.

He wet the bed and has an occasional stomach ache. That’s not an emergency, that’s a ring the GP in the morning thing.

If he was writhing about in agony then yes, that would be an emergency.
But this situation was NOT an emergency and he did not need to go to A+E.

They should fine people for improper use of A+E. It might make people think twice about going.
Funny how during Covid, A+E departments weren’t rammed full of people. All of a sudden people didn’t seem to be having ‘emergencies’. Funny that.

He also has a parent with type 1 diabetes so you'd have thought a simple home blood sugar test should have been able to determine if he was out of sync.

I don't know if a skinny 13yo who wets the bed one time, and occasionally has a belly ache, counts as requiring a trip to A&E in the middle of the night...
Hope he's okay though OP.

if OP’s DS has a stable bloody sugar at that time of night, that time after eating, then T1D is vanishingly unlikely. And as his sugars are stable, and he is a well child, allowing him to go home and rest and come back at a more civilised time would be best for him.

Correlation is not causation. I did not say there is no genetic link but it is a fact that is NOT extremely hereditary. The rates of heredity are 1-6% for siblings and 1-9% for a parent.

The parent with type 1 diabetes - his father - died. And a home blood sugar test only gives an indication of the levels at the time of testing. It’s not a diagnostic tool. My DH. Has diabetes and a lot of the time his glucose readings are within normal range. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t have diabetes.

My DH has diabetes and a lot of the time his glucose readings are within normal range. Doesn’t mean he doesn’t have diabetes

But your DH is treated, so his sugars ought to be normal most of the time.
This child is not being treated.

Just to clear this up as you seem to have a fundamental misunderstanding of how triage works - the triage nurse or doctor will not send anyone home or deem anything necessary or not - they are simply gathering information and prioritising you in a queue. They cannot and will not say that you don’t need to be there, no matter how ludicrous the reason for your visit.

Nowhere has OP said that her DS’s father died of diabetes though. He had diabetes and has now died but there is nothing to suggest he died of diabetes in what OP has said.

The level at the time of testing is what matters to determine if it is an emergency or not. This is standard first aid and most families would have a blood sugar test in their first aid kit. Anyone who can not determine the when there is a diabetic emergency was be advised to complete a first aid course.

And even funnier how access to GP services has remained limited since Covid. If they can’t access. GP same day face to face appointments people will use A&E. And how you determine improper use of A&E is subjective at best. Once you go down the road of introducing fines you’re almost guaranteeing that people will die.

Fair enough but her son wasn't mildly unwell, he wet the bed the previous night. I'm sorry to hear how unwell your son was, I hope he's doing better now.

On the flip side, if people carry on showing up at a&es in ever increasing volume because they have a splinter, or wet the bed once, or think they may be colourblind, people will also die due to services being overwhelmed by people who should be seeking out primary care.

Do you not understand how triaging works? A nurse cannot send someone home. They are there to prioritise the cases that come in. Of course he would still see a doctor. That means nothing.

Sorry but no! You are talking about type 2. Type 1 is absolutely a medical emergency and can only be treated with insulin. A 3 year old died in Ireland this week after not being diagnosed and having a seizure.
gas lighting and saying the poster has anxiety when you are factually incorrect and obviously know nothing about diabetes is quite frankly careless.

from a type 1 mum

The problem with AI is it depends entirely on how you ask the question:

what is the best route of help for a 12 child who has wet the bed who might have type 1 diabetes?

Chat: ✅ Contact a GP / family doctor as soon as possible — ideally today or tomorrow.

• Explain that the child is 12 and has started wetting the bed (or continues to), and that you are concerned about possible type 1 diabetes.
• Ask for an urgent appointment to assess for diabetes.

should I take my 12 year old child to A&E following bed wetting when I think they might have type 1 diabetes?

Chat: 🚨 Take your child to A&E (emergency department) or call 999/112 immediately

The same info but the framing of the question gives a different answer. One requires immediate action the other in the next 48 hours.

Normally a blood sugar of 4.8 rules out type 1 as untreated diabetics go “high” over 10. My 3 year old sons were 58 at times of diagnosis.

however at the beginning stages called the “honeymoon” the pancreas can kick in sporadically. That’s why they are likely to do a hba1c test as it looks the control of blood sugars over the past 3 months to see if this is higher than usual.

i would be hopefully optimistic it’s not diabetes based on the finger prick result though.

Hopefully your son is home again now and you are all getting some sleep.

Which is not appropriate here. OP suspected diabetes. DS has vague symptoms which could suggest it. The fact that his blood sugar was not raised at the time of taking doesn’t mean he doesn’t have diabetes. I’m not suggesting it was an emergency - clearly it wasn’t, but OP didn’t know that. And l don’t know anyone who has a blood glucose monitor in a home first aid kit - the testing strips have a shelf life and if out of date they shouldn’t be trusted.

If you google "ELSA study for type 1" they are currently taking on children to routine test for type 1 for free. Any child between 3 and 14 can join. My nephew found out he has early stages of t1 from this study even though he currently has no symptoms. Joining the study could be worth considering

You’re doing the right thing getting him checked given the family history.