Signs & Symptoms Of Latestage Diabetes

Many late-stage diabetes complications are preventable.

High blood-sugar levels can damage nerves and blood vessels throughout the body, leading to various health problems and decreasing the body's ability to fight infection. Maintaining proper blood-sugar control and getting regular checkups are vital so diabetics can help prevent these complications.

Gastrointestinal Problems

According to Martha Hope McCool, author of "My Doctor Says I Have a Little Diabetes," the most common cause of gastrointestinal problems in diabetics is the delayed emptying of the stomach after eating, which affects 40 percent of diabetics. Upper gastrointestinal symptoms include feelings of fullness in the stomach after eating, feeling full early, heartburn, abdominal pain and bloating, reflux, vomiting of undigested food and anorexia. Lower gastrointestinal problems can vary from constipation to diarrhea.

Urinary Problems

Diabetic nephrology (kidney disease caused by diabetes), which often is unnoticed, causes the inability to detect when the bladder is full and to empty the bladder completely. This often results in urinary-tract infections, marked by frequent urination, cloudy, bloody urine or foul-smelling urine, back pain, chills and fever.

Sexual Problems

Up to an estimated 35 percent of women and 75 percent of men with diabetes experience sexual problems, which are likely caused by nerve damage and circulation problems. Sexual symptoms for women include difficulty becoming aroused, decreased vaginal lubrication, fewer orgasms and increased frequency of vaginal infections. Men can experience difficulty getting an erection even though sex drive is normal, medically known as impotence or erectile dysfunction.

Cardiovascular Problems

Diabetic neuropathy can cause cardiovascular symptoms, such as fixed heart rate and orthostatic hypotension, which is marked by a drop in blood pressure when changing from a lying-down position to a standing position, causing dizziness, lightheadedness, weakness or vision changes upon rising.

Eye Problems

High blood-sugar levels can damage the eyes without causing changes in vision. Eventually, diabetic retinopathy occurs as a result of damage to the tiny blood vessels that supply the retinas. People with diabetes are twice as likely as non-diabetics to develop glaucoma and cataracts.

Skin Problems

Diabetics are prone to skin infections as a result of poor circulation from nerve damage, which leads to skin ulcers and slow wound-healing. Signs of infection include sores that do not heal, with pus, heat, redness, swelling and tenderness.

Foot and Lower-Leg Problems

Peripheral vascular disease causes loss of sensation in the legs and feet, leg pain from exercise that eases with rest, pain in the legs and feet at night and chronically cold feet. The skin of the lower legs and feet can appear shiny and hairless. Bruises, sores, tendernes and swelling of the feet also can occur.

Other Symptoms