Glossary of Diabetes - I

I

IDDM

See: Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. This term has been replaced by Type 1 diabetes.

IGT

See: Impaired glucose tolerance.

Immunosuppressive drugs

Drugs which interfere with the immune's system's ability to etect and destroy foreign cells, including transplanted tissue from a non identical twin. Most also reduce the ability to cope with infections. Those who have received a kidney or pancreas transplant must, in essentially all cases, be given drugs in this class to stop the body from rejecting the new organ tissue. Ciclosporin is a commonly used immunosuppressive drug.

Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT)

Blood glucose (i.e., 'sugar') levels higher than normal but not high enough to be cause a diagnosis of diabetes. People with IGT may or may not proceed to develop diabetes. Other names (no longer used as inaccurate or misleading) for IGT are "borderline," "subclinical," "chemical," or "latent" diabetes.

Implantable insulin pump

A small device placed inside of the body which delivers insulin in response to commands from a hand-held device called a programmer.

Impotence

inability to participate in sexual relations. In men, it is usually caused by failure of the complex mechanisms involved in erection. It's common in diabetic men, due to damage to the nerves involved in the erection sequence, and possibly due to microvascular damage.

Incidence

the rate of an occurrence of, for instance, an infection like measles or mumps or one of the types of diabetes.

Infusion Set

in a diabetic context, a tubing system to connect an insulin pump to the pump user, including a subcutaneous cannula, adhesive mount, quick-disconnect, and a pump cartridge connector.

Ingestion

Eating food, drinking water, or ingesting medicine by mouth.

Injection

Putting liquid into the body with a needle and syringe. Often directly into a vein, as for intravenous antibiotics in a hospital. for diabetes taking insulin, injection is usually subcutaneous (i.e. just under the skin) and not into a vein. In fact, injection of current insulins into a vein should be done only in a medical facility, and some insulin types should never be injected into a vein.

Insulin

a hormone produced by the beta cells in the Islet of Langerhans' beta cells. It is a very small protein and has effects all over the body, some connected with metabolism and others connected with arterial wall muscle tone, or electrolyte balances across cell membranes, etc. It is also the chief control mechanism for body metabolism.

Insulin allergy

This occurs when a person's body has an allergic or bad reaction to taking insulin made from non-human insulin (e.g., from pork or beef or from bacteria). the reaction can be because the insulin is not exactly the same as human insulin or because it has impurities. The allergy can be of two forms. In one, sometimes an area of skin becomes red and itchy around the place where the insulin is injected. This is called a local allergy. In another, there is a wider reaction, involving the blood or other organs. This is called a systemic allergy. The result can be hives or red patches all over the skin or may feel changes in heart rate or breathing rate. A doctor may treat the underlying allergy by prescribing purified insulins or by desensitization. The acute symptoms may also require treatment, possibly by anti-histamines. See also: Desensitization.

Insulin antagonists

Something that opposes or fights the action of insulin. Insulin lowers the level of glucose (sugar) in the blood, whereas glucagon raises it. Glucagon is, therefore, an antagonist of insulin.

Insulin binding

When insulin attaches itself to something else. This can occur in two ways. First, when a cell needs energy, insulin can bind with a special purpose receptor on the surface of a cell (about 2/3 of human body cells, including muscles, but not including nerve cells). The cell then can bring glucose (sugar) inside; thus enabling energy production in the cell. Some cells can store glucose internally (liver cells and muscle cells primarily), but others, most importantly, nerve cells, cannot. With the help of insulin, the cell can absorb 'fuel' and proceed to do its work. But sometimes the body acts against itself. In this second case, the insulin binds with the proteins that are supposed to tag antigens (substances or fragments of cells) which are foreign to the body (i.e., antibodies). If the insulin is an injected form and not made internally, the body may see the insulin as an outside or "foreign" substance. When the foreign insulin binds with the antibodies, it does cannot work as intended.

Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM)

An out-of-date term for Type 1 diabetes mellitus. See: Type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Insulin-induced atrophy

Small dents that form on the skin when a person keeps injecting a needle in the same spot. They are harmless. See also: Lipoatrophy; injection site rotation.

Insulin-induced hypertrophy

Small lumps that form under the skin when a person keeps injecting a needle in the same spot. See also: Lipodystrophy; injection site rotation.

Insulin pen

An insulin injection device the size of a pen that includes a needle attached to a vial of insulin. It can be used instead of syringes for giving insulin injections.

Insulin pump

a device which provides a steady (or intermittent, depending on design and adjustments) infusion of insulin. Pumps can be implantable (see implantable insulin pump) or external. the latter use a subcutaneous catheter.

Insulin reaction

Too low a level of blood glucose (i.e., 'sugar') in the blood; also called hypoglycemia. This occurs when a person with diabetes has injected too much insulin, eaten too little food, or exercised without compensating for the increased glucose uptake caused by exercise. The person may feel hungry, nauseated, weak, nervous, shaky, confused, and sweaty. Eating small amounts of glucose converting sugar or starch (glucose, sucrose (1/2 glucose) or starch (all glucose)), sweet juice with glucose or sucrose, or food with such sugar will usually help the person feel better within 10–15 minutes. Fat or protein in the food or drink will delay absorption and should be avoided. So a glucose tablet is ideal, a candy bar or pastry is not (both contain fat in addition to starch and usually sugar). Orange juice works, but less well than intended, as its main carbohydrate is fructose. See also: Hypoglycemia; insulin shock.

Insulin receptors

Protein complexes on the surface of a cell that allows the cell to join or bind with insulin that is in the blood. When the vrll membrane receptor and insulin bind, the cell takes up glucose (sugar) from the blood and can use it for energy.

Insulin resistance

a condition in which a cell is resistant to insulin action, usually as a result of Type 2 diabetes which is characterized by insulin resistance in about two-thirds of the body's cells (those which require insulin in order to absorb glucose from the blood). The result is that the beta cells can no longer regulate body metabolism correctly.

Insulin shock

A severe condition that occurs when the level of blood glucose (sugar) drops too far and quickly. The signs are shaking, sweating, dizziness, double vision, convulsions, and collapse. Insulin shock may occur when an insulin reaction is not treated quickly enough. In severe cases, brain damage, nerve damage, or even death is possible. Formerly used, in hospitals, as a treatment for some kinds of mental illness. See also: Hypoglycemia; insulin reaction.

Insulinoma

A tumor of the beta cells in areas of the pancreas called the islets of Langerhans. Although not usually cancerous, such tumors may cause the body to make extra insulin and may lead to a blood glucose (sugar) level that is too low.

Intermittent claudication

Pain in the muscles of the leg that occurs off and on, usually while walking or exercising, and results in lameness (claudication). The pain results from a narrowing of the blood vessels feeding the muscle. Drugs are available to treat this condition.

Intensive management or Intensive insulinotherapy

Intramuscular injection

Putting a fluid into a muscle with a needle and syringe.

Intravenous injection

Putting a fluid into a vein with a needle and syringe.

Islet cell Transplantation

Moving the beta (islet) cells from a donor pancreas and putting them into a person whose pancreas has stopped producing insulin. The beta cells make the insulin that most cells in the human body require to absorb glucose from the blood. Transplanting islet cells may one day help many people with diabetes, and the procedure is currently in the experimental stage.

Islets of Langerhans

Groups of cells in the pancreas. Some of them make and secrete hormones that help the body break down and use food. They were noticed by Paul Langerhans, a German medical student, in 1869; these clusters throughout the pancreas serve several functions. There are currently five known types of cells in an islet: beta cells, which make insulin and C-peptide; alpha cells, which make glucagon; delta cells, which make somatostatin; F cells which make pancreatic polypeptide, and D1 cells, about which little is known. The names of the cell types vary with location; in the UK they have slightly different names than in the US.