diabetes 1 question

I wanted to also point out that they are saying that Diabetes I has nothing to do with the pituitary it is autoimmune. So Dont I have to rule out anything brain related such as a thirst center? The polydipsia is throwing me. Thanks for any help.

The kidneys excrete glucose once the blood glucose raises above 180 in an attempt to lower glucose. The glucose drags urine out with it- polyuria. The result is dehydration- polydipsia.

Thank you. I guess thats why when the kidneys are overworked it can lead to nephropathy.

So its more like the polyuria causes the polydipsia instead of the other way around. I was trying to figure out the reason for the excess thirst instead of the reason for the excess urination. Makes sense now. Thanks!

That's correct diabetes type I and II are not related to the pituitary. Type I, meaning a total lack of insulin is likely autoimmune. There is evidence that beta cell damage may be secondary to a past viral infection.

Diabetes Insipidus can be mediated by a lack of Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) that is produced by the pituitary gland. ADH or vasopressin causes the kidneys to conserve water.

In DM, particularly Type I the related elevated blood glucose has a diuretic effect in the kidney causing fluid loss that can be dramatic. The resulting 'thirst' is related to dehydration and is a protective mechanism to cause the person to take fluids. Of course, this reaches a state that the fluid loss is too great, the glucose too high and the patient severely dehydrated leading metabolic acidosis and diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).

Thank you. I guess thats why when the kidneys are overworked it can lead to nephropathy.

So its more like the polyuria causes the polydipsia instead of the other way around. I was trying to figure out the reason for the excess thirst instead of the reason for the excess urination. Makes sense now. Thanks!

That's part of it, but glucose molecules are large. When excessive glucose is passing through small blood vessels, it can damage them just because it's more mass than these small blood vessels were meant to accommodate. That's a big reason for nephropathy and retinophaty. It's also a huge reason why eye exams are important. It's hard to look at the kidneys, but easy to look at the retina. If there's damage to the retina, it can be assumed that there's damage to the kidney.

thanks!