Preliminary studies found that more than 14% of patients who were hospitalized with COVID-19 and recovered were also newly diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 diabetes. It is something that medical experts watch closely.
“So if the immune system is not working as well and has a tendency to act against the insulin-producing cells, you can use certain tests, such as antibody tests, to diagnose it. And if there is one in those people.” Disease that can worsen the sugar in these people. This could explain why type 1 diabetes could be diagnosed after COVID-19 – that they are people who were already predisposed, “says Dr. Yogish Kudva, endocrinologist at the Mayo Clinic, whose clinical focus is diabetes .
Researchers say it is not yet clear whether diabetes is directly related to severe COVID-19 illness. And in the case of type 2 diabetes, the virus could accelerate the development of the disease in people with existing risk factors such as prediabetes, obesity, and high blood pressure.
“This person is predisposed to abnormal glucose properties, abnormal glucose regulation, and then severe COVID. This will accelerate the progression from that state to a more uncontrolled state,” says Kudva.
He says there’s still a lot to learn about the long-term effects of COVID-19, but it’s clear that people with diabetes are at greater risk of developing serious illness from the virus.
“It now appears that people with diabetes appear to develop more severe COVID-19 disease. It’s not that people with diabetes are more prone to COVID-19. But when they develop COVID-19 the disease is much more severe and seems to be progressing. That seems to happen with both type 2 and type 1 diabetes, “says Kudva.
He says it is important to immediately start improving the underlying health conditions that can cause diabetes and following COVID-19 safety precautions.
“Strict adherence to all primary prevention measures we use: mask wearing, social distancing, hand washing – I think these things continue to be relevant and will be relevant for some time to come. We are still in the middle of the pandemic,” says Kudva.
“I think a second issue would be physical fitness. Given the limitations we have, we are doing everything we can to ensure that all guidelines for working safely indoors and outdoors are followed. So work on the improvement of physical fitness Physical activity is clearly an important part of everyday life and contributes to our fitness and thus to our ability to withstand any serious illness. So that is the second component. And then the third component would be when you get sick, Early Attention To Seek And then the fourth component is the vaccine. “
