Diabetes and Its Hepatic Complication

INGARAMO PI; FRANCES D.E; RONCO M.T; CARNOVALE C.E

Hot Topics in Endocrine and Endocrine-Related Diseases

InTech, Chapters

Año: 2013; p. 129 - 145

After food intake, blood glucose levels rise and insulin is released by the pancreas to maintain homeostasis. In the diabetic state, the absence or deficient action of insulin in target tissues is the cause of hyperglycemia and abnormalities in the metabolism of proteins, fats and carbohydrates. In addition, chronic hyperglycemia, characteristic of diabetes, is responsible for organic dysfunction, being eyes, kidneys, nervous system, heart and blood vessels the most important affected organs. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a heterogeneous dysregulation of carbohydrate metabolism, characterized by chronic hyperglycemia resulting from impaired glucose metabolism and the subsequent increase in blood serum glucose concentration. The pathogenic equation for DM presents a complex interrelation of metabolic, genetic and environmental factors, as well as inflammatory mediators. Among the latter, it is mostly unclear whether they reflect the disease process or are simply signs of systemic or local responses to the disease [1]. DM affects about 26 million individuals in America and at least 250 million people worldwide (World Health Organization), causing about 5% of all deaths. Besides, the number of affected people is expected to duplicate by 2030 unless urgent measures are taken [2, 3]. Every day, 200 children under 14 years are affected by type 1 diabetes, and this number increases by 3 per cent each year, whereas the analogous increment for preschool children reaches 6 per cent [4]. All these data point out the epidemic character of DM.