Frequency and determinants of diabetic ketoacidosis in diabetic patients

Aim: to determine the frequency of diabetic ketoacidosis in diabetic patients presenting in a tertiary care setting and frequency of precipitating factors for diabetic ketoacidosis in diabetic patients. study design: cross sectional survey. study setting: west medical ward,mayo hospital,lahore. duration of study: six months results: majority of patients were between 41-55 years of age,mean age with sd was calculated as 46.75+4.64 years,177(59%) were females while 123(41%) were male,frequency of diabetic ketoacidosis in diabetic patients presenting in a tertiary care setting was 34(11.33%) while 266(88.67%) had no findings of the morbidity,while precipitating factors responsible for diabetic ketoacidosis in diabetic patients shows non-compliance as a main factor among other factors i.e. 22(64.71%),new onset of diabetes was recorded in 9(26.47%) and 8(23.53%) had acute illness among 34(11.33%) positive for diabetic ketoacidosis subjects while few patients had >1 precipitating factor i.e. acute illness and new onset of diabetes mellitus. conclusion: frequency of diabetic ketoacidosis among diabetic patients in a tertiary care setting is higher while acute illness,non-compliance and new onset of diabetes are common precipitating factors of the morbidity.