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Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Causes

Signs and Symptoms

Diagnosis

Treatment

Prevention

Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a potentially life-threatening complication of diabetes. It happens when the liver starts breaking down fat at a dangerously fast rate, processing the fat into a fuel called ketones, which causes a diabetic person’s blood to become acidic.

Verywell / Theresa Chiechi

Causes of Ketoacidosis

Cells need glucose to get the energy they require to function. But when that doesn’t happen for people with diabetes and their body doesn’t have enough insulin to use glucose, it starts to burn fat for energy, producing chemicals known as ketones. But when ketones accumulate in a person’s blood, they make it more acidic—potentially to the point of being toxic and poisoning their body. This is known as ketoacidosis.

A person may experience ketoacidosis for one of the following reasons:

Ketoacidosis is far more common in people withtype 1 diabetes. In fact, ketoacidosis may be the first indication that they have diabetes if they had not already been diagnosed. People with previous diagnoses of type 1 diabetes may experience ketoacidosis as a result of an infection, injury, a serious illness, missing doses of insulin shots, or the stress of surgery.

Though it’s possible for someone with type 2 diabetes to develop ketoacidosis, it is less common and typically not as severe as it is in someone with type 1 diabetes. Triggers for ketoacidosis in people with type 2 diabetes include prolonged uncontrolled blood sugar, missing doses of medicines, medications called SGLT-2s, or a severe illness or infection.

What is a Dangerous Blood Sugar Level?

Signs and Symptoms of Ketoacidosis

Though ketoacidosis usually develops slowly, once it reaches a certain point—vomiting, specifically—it can become life-threatening in a matter of a few hours. The first warning signs of ketoacidosis include:

Gradually, other symptoms will appear, and may include:

There are also certain complications that can arise following ketoacidosis, including health problems like:

Ketoacidosis Diagnosis

For those already diagnosed with diabetes, there are several other ways to test for ketoacidosis, including:

Ketoacidosis Treatment

Anytime someone with diabetes has symptoms of ketoacidosis, it’s important that they seek medical attention as soon as possible. Ketoacidosis typically requires treatment in the ICU and involves:

From there, doctors will attempt to determine what caused ketoacidosis in the patient, like some type of an infection. In most cases, a person will respond to treatments for ketoacidosis within 24 hours.

Ketoacidosis Prevention

People with diabetes can help prevent ketoacidosis with a few precautions, including:

A Word From Verywell

Those who have been diagnosed with diabetes are probably used to checking their glucose levels and ketones and have the equipment needed to perform these tests at home. But symptoms of ketoacidosis are frequently used to diagnose diabetes in people without a personal history of the condition. So while it’s crucial for people with diabetes to keep an eye on the signs and symptoms of ketoacidosis, it’s also important for everyone else to be familiar with them as well.

3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.MedlinePlus.Diabetic ketoacidosis.American Diabetes Association.DKA (ketoacidosis) & ketones.The Cleveland Clinic.Diabetes: Preventing complications.

3 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.MedlinePlus.Diabetic ketoacidosis.American Diabetes Association.DKA (ketoacidosis) & ketones.The Cleveland Clinic.Diabetes: Preventing complications.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

MedlinePlus.Diabetic ketoacidosis.American Diabetes Association.DKA (ketoacidosis) & ketones.The Cleveland Clinic.Diabetes: Preventing complications.

MedlinePlus.Diabetic ketoacidosis.

American Diabetes Association.DKA (ketoacidosis) & ketones.

The Cleveland Clinic.Diabetes: Preventing complications.

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