CHENNAI: Newly found diabetes among COVID-19 recovered patients is becoming a serious health condition, observed doctors in Chennai. Out of the 630 people who visited the post-COVID follow up clinic at the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital, doctors said 14 people were diagnosed with diabetes.
This phenomenon has been observed worldwide lately by experts, who are trying to understand whether and how COVID-19 might be triggering diabetes among those who didn't have the disease before. A senior doctor in-charge of the follow-up clinic said that none of the patients had diabetes during their stay at the hospital and it is only found weeks or even a month after their recovery.
"While most people who returned to the hospital with poor health conditions were aged above 45, the people with newly found diabetes post-recovery were just aged between 40-45," the doctor said.
The doctor said that while breathing issues and myalgia (muscle pain) have been the common health condition that majority of people have come up with, the diabetes is something new. "Sugar checks are mandatory as part of COVID checks. Even for diabetes patients, insulin shots are given to keep sugar in check during treatment," said that doctor, adding that the reason for people developing diabetes post-COVID recovery is not known.
The medico added that the patients are given insulin shots and are directed to undergo routine treatment for diabetes. Doctors said that the hospital keeps check of the patients' health condition daily for 14 days after discharge and most patients returned back with health conditions after two weeks.
Steroids a possible reason?
Dr V Mohan, chairman, Dr Mohan's Diabetes Specialities Centre, said high doses of steroids during the COVID-19 treatment could be a reason for sugar levels going up post-discharge. "Initially, patients are given intravenous steroids and subsequently, it is reduced to oral doses before the doses are stopped. Sugar levels too are supposed to reduce after this but some people without any diabetes too show high sugar levels post discharge," Dr Mohan said.
He said that it is unknown whether COVID -19is directly involved in the increase in sugar levels but steroids could possibly have an impact. Various studies globally have highlighted that the immunosuppressive tendencies of steroids facilities in sugar levels are going uncontrolled among patients.
Dr Subramanian Swaminathan, Infectious Diseases Specialist at Gleneagles Global Health City said this trend of patients developing diabetes is seen worldwide. "Whether COVID-19 has caused diabetes or unmasked diabetes, we don't know yet," he said.
Dr Swaminathan said that even patients with mild COVID are developing diabetes later on. "In such a scenario, we can't say the medicine is solely responsible for causing diabetes. Maybe it just has some part to do with this," he said. Dr Swaminathan added that chronic fatigue syndrome, intermittent fever and inflammatory syndrome are widely observed among patients post-recovery.
"Unless we follow up on more patients, we won't know the exact reasons for health complications. It is a good initiative to have follow up clinics and we need to expand it," he said.