Abstract
Background: This study was conducted to determine the frequency and
clinical features of patients who were diagnosed incidentally as having
diabetes mellitus (DM) in the emergency department. Aim: Our aim was to
investigate the frequency of DM in patients whose high blood glucose
levels were detected, and to examine the subsequent treatment these
patients. Methods: The participants were selected from among patients
who had a glucose level of ≥200 mg/dL and admitted to emergency
department with symptoms of hyperglycemia in the past 1 year. Age, sex,
presence of chronic disease, and the laboratory blood parameter results
of the patients were recorded. We divided the patients into three groups
as those who had never been admitted to clinics for treatment, those who
were admitted and given treatment, and not given treatment. Results:
According to their sexes, 73 (52.1%) were male and 67 (47.9%) were
female. It was determined that 86 of the 140 patients included in the
study were admitted to clinics for treatment. It was determined that no
medication was given to 50 of these patients, but treatment was
initiated in 36. Patients with glucose level ≥300 mg/dL were found to be
receiving more treatment significantly (p=0.031). Conclusions: In this
study, diabetic patients whose blood sugar is between 200-300 mg/dL
should be sent to the DM related clinic immediately when diagnosed in
the emergency department.