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Help is at your side | A 15-year-old girl in her teenage years encountered a sudden emergency during the Spring Festival: This "sweetness" almost cost her her life!

At the age of 15, it should be the most glorious period of one's life. However, just during the Spring Festival that had just passed, a 15-year-old girl in her prime experienced a terrifying and life-threatening emergency due to a sudden "sweet" incident. On the 10th day, which was supposed to be a joyous day for family reunion, Xiao Zhang suddenly lost consciousness without any warning. Her family immediately took her to the emergency department of Yantai Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.
"When the parents brought Xiao Zhang here, she was already unconscious, breathing rapidly and deeply, and her mouth emitted a strong rotten apple smell," said Dr. Wang Xiaolei, the director of the intensive care unit. "At that time, Xiao Zhang's blood sugar level exceeded 33.3 mmol/L, and her blood pH value dropped as low as 6.758. She was diagnosed with severe diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), and the condition was extremely critical. She was immediately transferred to the intensive care unit."
Time is life. Dr. Wang Xiaolei and Dr. Ren Xiudong quickly organized the rescue. Under strict monitoring, the medical team urgently took a series of treatment measures such as fluid replacement, lowering blood sugar, supplementing potassium, correcting acidosis, and reducing brain edema. Fortunately, during the race against time, Xiao Zhang's consciousness gradually recovered, the acidosis was relieved, and her blood sugar was slowly decreasing. At that moment, when she opened her eyes, the father standing by her bedside burst into tears and couldn't speak for a long time.
Further examinations revealed the truth of this crisis: Xiao Zhang's glycosylated hemoglobin was as high as 17.9%, far above the normal range, indicating that her blood sugar control had been extremely poor for a long time. Her urine sugar was 3+, and her urine ketone bodies were 4+. All of these pointed to the same problem: she had already been on the "dangerous edge" of diabetes!

So, what exactly is diabetic ketoacidosis? Director Wang Xiaolei explained that it is the most dangerous acute complication of diabetes. If treatment is not timely, the mortality rate for adults can reach over 30%; while if a child develops cerebral edema, the mortality rate can be as high as 90%! In simple terms, when there is a severe lack of insulin in the body, the body is unable to utilize blood sugar for energy supply, and will be forced to break down fat in large quantities. During the fat breakdown process, an acidic substance called "ketone bodies" is produced. When ketone bodies accumulate in the blood, the blood becomes "acidic", causing severe metabolic disorders throughout the body. In severe cases, it can directly endanger life.
The danger that occurred to Xiao Zhang was not without any warning signs. Three days before the onset, she suffered from secretory otitis media, and the infection was the most common trigger for ketoacidosis. Xiao Zhang's daily eating habits also laid the foundation for potential problems: she was fond of snacks and drank three or four cups of milk tea every week. She often drank the beverages as water and consumed a lot of sweets, hardly eating vegetables, and lacked exercise. In fact, even before the onset, her body had repeatedly warned her, but Xiao Zhang never realized that her blood sugar was already abnormal and never paid attention to these "minor signals" from her body.
When talking about that terrifying scene during the Spring Festival, Xiao Zhang and her family still have lingering fears. Although diabetic ketoacidosis is dangerous, it is completely preventable. This 15-year-old girl's experience serves as a heavy warning: when the body issues an alarm, one must not stubbornly endure it. Seeking medical treatment in time is the most responsible thing for oneself and one's family.