Diabetes Insipidus

Question: Do i have to take medication for central diabetes insipidus for the rest of my life? I am suffering for central diabetes insipidus since 1988. I take medication two to three times a day sine 1988. What should i do?

Answer: You have to take it life long.

Question: My lab has diabetes insipidus, what are the side effects of Desmopressin? He is only 6/12 and was diagnosed w/ diabetes insipidus last Ocotober and has been on Desmopressin the synthetic hormone in an eye drop form since Oct. He went from an active dog to a lifeless stuffed animal, he doesn't want to do anything he used to do. He is also on thyroid meds. He was just at the vet last month and all of his levels are normal. Does anyone know the side effects of desmopressin b.c. I think that is causing all of his terrible side effects. I just want my old dog back :( We have spent over $5,000 on Koby and this disorder. We get him tested every three months. We do not have any children yet so he is like our son and we will do anything it takes to get him back to his normal self.

Answer: This is something I found when researching DI... Therapy is not mandatory for DI as long as the pet has unlimited access to water, and is kept in an environment where constant urination is not a problem. This usually applies to outdoor pets. Therapy with DDAVP can be administered intermittently, when severe thirst and excess urination is especially undesirable, for example, if guests are visiting. Unrestricted access to water is absolutely imperative. Follow-up Optimal treatment for a pet with diabetes insipidus requires both home and professional care, with follow up being critical. Administer prescribed medications and alert your veterinarian if you are experiencing problems treating your pet. Follow up includes: Periodic rechecks by your veterinarian, especially if the diabetes insipidus is suspected to be caused by a tumor affecting the part of the brain responsible for making ADH. Seek immediate veterinary care if any illness develops that causes vomiting or causes the pet to reduce his water intake, as there is a risk of life-threatening dehydration if water is withdrawn from pets with DI for even a few hours. Does your dog have unlimited access to plenty of fresh water? Did the vet do plenty of tests to rule out other illnesses which can also have the same symptoms of DI? The diagnostic tests recommended will help differentiate DI from these other conditions that can cause excessive thirst and urination: Diabetes mellitus (excessive sugar in the blood) Renal glycosuria (excessive sugar in the urine, but not diabetic) Chronic kidney failure Pyometra (infection of the uterus) Hypercalcemia, a condition of excessively high calcium levels in the blood Liver failure Hyperadrenocorticism, also called Cushing's disease, a condition of overactive adrenal glands Pyelonephritis, an infection of the kidneys Hypokalemia (low potassium levels in the blood) Hypoadrenocorticism, also called Addison's disease, a condition of underactive adrenal glands Hyperthyroidism (excessive thyroid activity) Acromegaly (excessive production of growth hormone) Psychogenic polydipsia (excessive drinking due to psychological reasons, such as a change in the pet's environment I'd definitely talk to the vet about other forms of treatment, such as: Treatment In-depth Desmopressin acetate (also called DDAVP) is a synthetic form of the hormone ADH. It is the standard therapy for central DI. It comes in two forms: injection and nasal drops. The nasal spray can be transferred to a sterile eye dropper bottle and applied to the eye if the dog won't tolerate nasal drops. One to four drops administered once or twice a day usually controls the clinical signs. (which you are currently using) Chlorpropamide may reduce urine output in some dogs, although results can be inconsistent. Severe forms of central DI often don't respond. Thiazide diuretics – while it may seem paradoxical to give a dog with DI a diuretic to increase urine output, the net result is usually a reduction in overall urine output. Salt restriction has a net effect of reducing urine output, and may be used sometimes as the sole therapy for central DI. Good luck.

Question: Canadian Cost for canine Diabetes insipidus? I brought my little beagle to the vet last night after a concerning episode of massive amounts of urine- accidents. I was wondering if there are any Canadians out there who are currently treating a dog for diabetes insipidus. I live in Montreal- West Island. However, any Canadian answer will do. I want to know how much it will be to make sure my little girl is healthy- I like to be prepared.

Answer: below is e-mail address to join a support group for owners of dogs with diabetes insipidus. These lists can be a godsend. diabetes_insipidus_dogs-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Question: Is weight loss a symptom of dipsogenic diabetes insipidus? My brief is "A 19 year old student has recently noticed that he has been much more thirsty and has been producing much more urine than normal. Although eating a high calorific, fast-food diet, he has also lost weight." And I have been led to believe that it is DDI. Any help appreciated.

Answer: yes it is. I have what your student has. It can be called several different things. it's refered to as Adult Growth Hormone Deficiency, also look under Pitutarty gland, and the name for the disease is called Insipidus Diabetes which means your lacking growth hormone. First they had me start out with a neuroligist and he took tests of the brain to see what happened. Then he sent me to an encronologist who specializes in Diabetes and she took blood work to see where my levels where. they found my levels were low and that I needed to get hormone replacements. If he has no insurance and needs replacements Eli Lily can get him on a Patients asst program where they pay for the drug. tell him to drink those Ensure drinks as they pack weight on. Start here and you will be on the right road.

Question: Can diabetes insipidus lead to seizures? I understand through dehydration it is very possible, but I would really appreciate any input I can get on this.

Answer: Nephrogenic diabetes insipidus (NDI) is a disorder characterized by an inability of the kidneys to remove water from the urine. The main symptoms of NDI are excessive thirst (polydipsia) and excretion of large amounts of watery urine (polyuria). Individuals with NDI must drink large amounts of water to compensate for the loss of water in the urine. As a result, a person with NDI must urinate more frequently than usual. There are two different forms of NDI, inherited and acquired. Inherited NDI is a rare disorder which is present from birth. Usually, only men have NDI. Women may have varying degrees of symptoms including increased thirst and the need for more frequent urination. If infants and young children are not treated for their NDI, they will lose too much water from their body. These periods of extreme water loss (dehydration) may lead to brain damage and, in rare cases, death. If NDI is diagnosed and treatment is started in early infancy, and if periods of severe dehydration are avoided, NDI should not affect a person’s intelligence or how long they will live. For more info visit my free website http://www.reddiabetes.com

Question: Dehydration can be caused by endocrine disturbances such as diabetes mellitus or diabetes insipidus? IS THIS TRUE OR FALSE?

Answer: True. The word "diabetes" means "to pass" (as in "to pass urine," so we ue it to mean it causes you to pee alot). The first symptoms of diabetes mellitus is polydypsia (drink a lot), polyuria (pee a lot), and polyphagia (eat a lot). Of course doctors wouldn't be as highly paid if they said things like "patient eats, drink and pees a lot," so instead we say "patient presents with polydypsia, polyuria, and polyphagia." And anytime you have polydypsia (pee a lot), you have a higher chance of being dehydrated. Especially in Diabetes Insipidus. Now go do your homework! :) You should understand the difference between diabetes mellitus (what we mean when we say "he's diabetic") Type I (Juvenile Diabetes, autoimmune, insulin producing cells are destroyed) and Type II (adult-onset diabetes, insulin-independent, its mostly due to loss of insulin receptors, mostly due to overeating, obesity, bad diet, and lack of exercise), and Diabetes Insipidus (lots of pee, usually due to lack of ADH (the thing you release to not go pee), due to inherited disease). So know the different types of diabetes. And what does this insulin thing do? ;) Where is insulin released from, and when does the body release it? What is a receptor? And what happens when insulin meets (bind to) its receptor? When you start "getting" concepts in medicine like receptors, up and down regulation, and feedback mechanisms, understanding diseases and drugs becomes really easy.

Question: Help with the nursing process on diabetes insipidus? I was wondering what were somethings that I could put down for each part of the nursing processing dealing with this disease? Assessment: assessing for signs of thirst or dehydration diagnosing: Im not sure what to put for this? Like the diagnostic tests that can be ordered? planning: like planning they have lots of fluids and the decrease risk for dehydration and maintaining a healthy diet and getting exercise? Implementation: Im not sure Then Evaluation: Im not really sure how to piece this all together in these categories any help would be nice. Thanks

Answer: Assess for signs of dehydration and thirst: Check the patients skin tone, they will have loose skin and sunken dark eyes if dehydrated. Also, their urine will be very dark, and they may have a dry mouth and dry sore lips. Use your skills to make an assessment when you see them. Then you can use clinical diagnostic methods...... Diagnosis: The glucose intolerance blood test, also sugar levels in the urine. Planning: Regular meals, probably 4-5 times daily, plenty of fluids etc. Implementation: Write up a care plan for patient, explain to them what to do Evaluation: See patient in few weeks to retest blood and urine and to see if they look and feel better. Question them on compliance. Hope that helps, good luck!

Question: elderly dog with heart disease and diabetes insipidus? the vet has diagnosed my dog with the following conditions 1 - dilated cardiomyopathy 2 - diabetes insipidus can anyone tell me how these two diseases effect each other and do they make each other worse.

Answer: The best person to ask this question to would have been your veterinarian. SInce cardiomyopathy deals with the heart and the diabetes insipidus deals with the kidneys, I can only assume that they would interconnect with each other on some levels, but the vet would be able to explain each ailment and would be able to give you a prognosis.

Question: Diabetes insipidus? What does it mean to not have sweet urine? Does it mean that my urine doesn't taste sweet? Any Med Experts fill me in please. i would really appreciate it?

Answer: Diabetes insipidus is caused by a lack of regulation of ADH or antidiuretic hormone. This allows for excessive amounts of urine to leave the body. This is known as polyuria. Diabetes mellitus also has this symptom but it is related to a different mechanism than diabetes insipidus (excess glucose attracts water and leads to excessive urine leaving the body) Polyuria related to diabetes mellitus sometimes has glucose, a type of sugar, present in the urine. That is where the term "sweet urine" comes from. In diabetes insipidus, however, there is no glucose in the urine, thus no "sweet urine"

Question: Why thiazide diuretics are used in diabetes insipidus? Though they r diuretics but still they show anti diuretic action in diabetes insipidus patient

Answer: depends what you need them for.

Question: Diabetes Insipidus? I am desparately trying to figure out why my 7 year old daughter still has accidents during the day. Someone suggested Diabetes because she is always thirsty. She had a urine culture and it came out normal. My question is whether or not Diabetes Insipidus can be determined through just a urine culture?

Answer: from reading the quote I included, it looks like a UA "can" determine DI. I would have thought that a blood test was required myself. I included the link; google listed a few others. good luck! "A 24-hour urine collection for measurement of total volume, osmolality, and creatinine is sufficient to determine if you have DI. After that, additional tests are required to determine the type of DI. If the 24-hour urine volume you report is complete and accurate, it is very unlikely that you have DI of any type (unless you are very small i.e., weight less than 100 pounds). The upper limit of normal for a 24-hour urine volume for an adult is 50 ml. per kg. of body weight."

Question: Diabetes insipidus in a 20 month old? my 20 month old just got diagnosed with diabetes insipidus....we have to see an endcrinologist and i was just wondering if anyone suffers from this and how it is treated and what are the long term effects

Answer: It's a rare condition, and has absolutely nothing to do with the more common diabetes mellitus ("sugar" diabetes), apart from the name and the fact that it makes its victims urinate a lot. The treatment varies with the exact type of DI (nephrogenic, neurogenic, etc.). Usually the treatment involves taking medication for life. Patients also have to drink lots of water so that they don't get dehydrated. The degree to which medication or simply drinking water can deal with the condition depends on how severe it is and how much trouble it causes the patient. Severe DI left untreated will send patients to the bathroom almost constantly (and they spend the rest of the time in the kitchen getting something to drink), which doesn't necessarily hurt them as long as they don't get dehydrated, but it obviously makes day-to-day life very difficult.

Question: Explain the fluid imbalance of a person with diabetes insipidus?

Answer: It could be quite difficult to explain to any degree that might satisfy you, so I've included some websites for you to take a look at below. Basically, the hypothalamus produces a hormone called antidiuretic hormone (ADH), which is stored in the pituitary gland. This hormone tells your kidneys when and how to control the production of urine. Unfortunately, something goes wrong with the process (you'll need to look at the second url for a fuller explanation of the different types of diabetes insipidus) so your kidneys produce lots of dilute urine. To keep doing this, your body needs to take in a lot of fluid, hence lots of fluid intake, and lots of fluid output. This gives rise to the sometimes misdiagnosis, by the lay person, that the sufferer has diabetes mellitus. The two conditions are NOT the same.

Question: I think I might have insipidus diabetes? I want to test for Insipidus diabetes, but I am really shy about telling my mom I think I have it, because I have broken many bones, and my knees are bad so they always get hurt, but she always thinks I am overreacting when I am not. How do I break it to my mom. Plus: I have done research and am almost positive Insipidus Diabetes could be the answer

Answer: Katie j! You have to tell your mom. Just say that you need to get tested. go for a test and then the test will decide whether you are overreacting or not. But in both cases dont worry at all. The typical symptoms of diabetes insipidus are that it causes frequent urination. The large volume of urine is diluted, mostly water. To make up for lost water, you may feel the need to drink large amounts. You are likely to urinate frequently, even at night, which can disrupt sleep or, on occasion, cause bedwetting. Because of the excretion of abnormally large volumes of dilute urine, you may quickly become dehydrated if you do not drink enough water. Children with DI may be irritable or listless and may have fever, vomiting, or diarrhea. In its clinically significant forms, DI is a rare disease. For more information visit my free website http://www.reddiabetes.com

Question: Why is it called diabetes insipidus if it has nothing to do with blood sugar? Thank you for your help!!!

Answer: "Insipidus" means "having no flavour in Latin". Diabetes insipidus was named because years ago diabetes was diagnosed by tasting the urine (sweet urine would signify glucose in it and thus would signify DM). As similar symptoms are shared between the two disorders, the condition without sweet urine was named diabetes insipidus.

Question: Is Nephrogenic Diabetes Insipidus similiar to Children's Diabetes or is it very different?

Answer: PARTIALLY YES Nephrogenic diabetes insipidus is a disorder in which the kidneys produce large amounts of dilute urine. Dilute urine has a high water content, while urine that is lower in water is more concentrated. Normally, the kidneys control the concentration of the urine in response to the body’s need for water by absorbing water and returning it to the blood. Nephrogenic diabetes insipidus is hereditary in males. It can also occur in people who take drugs such as lithium, demeclocycline, and aminoglycosides. The gene that causes nephrogenic diabetes insipidus is carried on the X chromosome. Women with this gene can pass the disease to their sons, and it is usually males who develop symptoms. The body naturally produces an antidiuretic hormone (ADH), which tells the kidneys to return more water to the blood and concentrate the urine. However, in people with nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, the kidneys ignore this hormone and continue to produce dilute urine. When nephrogenic diabetes insipidus is induced by a drug, the drug damages the kidneys so they are unable to respond to the ADH. The symptoms of nephrogenic diabetes insipidus are extreme thirst, called polydipsia, and the excretion of large amounts of dilute urine, called polyuria. When the condition is hereditary, these symptoms appear at birth. Infants who do not receive enough fluids to replace the water lost through the urine may become dehydrated. Prolonged dehydration affects all the body’s tissues, including the brain cells. Untreated, nephrogenic diabetes insipidus can cause brain damage and affect physical growth. To diagnose nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, doctors evaluate the symptoms and test the blood and urine for levels of water and sodium. If you are an adult, your doctor will need to know if you take any medications that can cause nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. To confirm a diagnosis, your doctor will test the kidney’s response to the antidiuretic hormone (ADH). There is no cure for nephrogenic diabetes insipidus. Treatment involves preventing dehydration by drinking water at the first signs of thirst. In infants and children who may not readily communicate their thirst, it is the responsibility of the adult to provide water frequently. Your doctor may also prescribe certain drugs that help with this disorder. With treatment, infants with nephrogenic diabetes insipidus usually develop normally. If you or your child has nephrogenic diabetes insipidus, always make sure you carry water with you when away from home. For more info visit my free website http://www.reddiabetes.com