Dermatológia pre prax 2/2007

SKIN CHANGES IN DIABETIC PATIENTS FROM A PERSPECTIVE OF A DIABETOLOGIST

Skin complications in diabetes mellitus develop during the life time in 25–30 % of diabetic patients. Skin changes can be divided in changes related to impairment of glucose metabolism that manifest usually during a metabolic decompensation and disappear with correction of plasma glucose level (pruritus, skin infection, xantomatosis, carotinemia), in changes not related to actual metabolic compensation (skin changes of diabetic microangiopathy, macroangiopathy and neuropathy), and changes resulting from therapy of diabetes (lipodystrophy in insulin treated patients, allergic skin reaction). The article discusses etiology, pathogenesis and clinical manifestations of the most frequent skin involvement in diabetes mellitus.

Keywords: diabetes mellitus, pruritus, skin infection, skin changes with microangiopathy, necrobiosis lipoidica, acanthosis nigricans,lipodystrophy