what effects does predisolone have on diabetes ?

Question

Our father has lung cancer and is having chemo. Has now been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. He has to take predisolone before his chemo and has been told this will raise his sugar levels. His levels are very high and we want to know if it is normal to go so high.

Answer 1

Aka as Prednisone is a powerful steroid that has an anti inflammatory effect . Short term it is a great drug but long term can have adverse effects such as masking infection, raising blood sugar, increasing blood pressure,maldistribution of fat around the face and upper back among other adverse effects. The Prednisone will help your father breathe easier given the fact he has lung cancer. His blood sugar can be monitored closely and controlled with more effort.He may not necessarily get higher blood sugar levels. This does vary among individuals. I hope he is comfortable and enjoys what is left of his life with family, friends, and other loved ones.

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

2

Answer 4

When you say high this means different things to different people. Was it over 300?

As to prednisone, it tends to depress the immune system, and diabetes is an immune system disease. It will reduce the body's ability to fight infection even while reducing inflamation.

Consult an Endocronologist.

Get Dad on the ADA exchange Diet, this will help his sugar levels.

I doubt the Doc would have ordered Prednisone for a Diabetic if the need had not been critical to great. If this is a short course, don't worry. Long course steriods have detrimental effects, one of which is activating diabetes.

Not knowing the condition for which this Doc ordered this med, I can not really advise you.

I can tell you that long term steroid use can......cause diabetes.......bone problems...........sexual problems.........emotional problems, and skin problems.

The negative effects of high sugars have to be balanced in the treatment. In other words, no reputable doc would prescribe steroids for your Father unless the need outweighed the risk.

Make Dad's Doc discuss treatment with you, and don't stop asking questions until you are satisfied. This is your job. Use internet search engines to acquaint yourself with the cancer your Father has, and treatments available. A good place to start is WebMD.com

Remember, a very high sugar can be controlled by doses of insulin. The inflamation this Doctor is treating probably is getting in the way of your Dad's diabetes treatment. It is a question of prorities. You treat the most life threatening condition first. Particularly if its effects are controlable as with blood glucose.

Probably the inflamation (0r rejection) issue is more urgent, than your dad's Blood Glucose Level.

Answer 5

Prednisolone is a synthetic glucocorticoid which will raise blood sugar levels - how high, depends on the dose and whether the person already is diabetic. For diabetic patients, it is advisable to maintain the blood sugar levels between 5-7 mmol/L (90-126 mg/dl) for fasting and 7-12 mmol/L (126-200 mg/dl) post-meal, i.e.target HbA1c about 7-8%.

Since the prednisolone is necessary for chemo, your father may require increasing doses of oral hypoglycemic medication or insulin therapy to maintain healthy blood sugar levels. The doctors would be able to take care of that.

Answer 6

Doctors Reverse Diabetes Without Drugs : http://Help.DiabetesGoGo.com

Answer 7

My webpage has links to many natural health sites. If he follows my diet recommendations, he will not only lower his blood sugar, he will strengthen his immune system. There are lots of things you can do to improve his chances. First, is to get him on a healthy diet with plenty of antioxidants like blueberries, acai berries, goji berries and broccoli. Don't believe everything the doctors tell you. Most medical doctors know very little about how to take care of a type 2 diabetic patient. You'll have to trust me on this. Before you dismiss this as some sort of fanatic's idea of a scam, go to my webpage and read the results of my most recent bloodwork.... I'm not making this stuff up.
http://www.geocities.com/seabulls69/Type_II_Diabetes.html

Answer 8

Steroid induced hyperglycemia (elevation of blood sugar while taking steroid) is what is happening to your father. Some chemo agents could also cause hyperglycemia, along with stress induced hyperglycemia(stress triggers the release of the flight or fight response hormones norepinephrine & epinephrine which leads to hyperglycemia). The treatment usually requires carb control, controlling the hyperglycemia with insulin while receiving steroids. Studies have shown that if you control blood sugars during hospitalization you could improve outcomes by decreasing wound infection and such. Hope this helps

Answer 9

Steroid leads to increased glucose out put from liver and decreased uptake at muscle.Hence adding insulin and thiazolidinedione or metformin as condition permits ,will definitely control glucose levels,albeit at higher doses of insulin.

Answer 10

Prednisolone increases blood glucose. To get it to normal your father has to take recommended dose of insulin.