Diabetes insipidus Free Essay Example, 1500 words

This is normally caused by some sort of renal disease or an ADH malfunction (Colorado State, 2011). II Diagnosis The patient usually presents to his physician with the symptoms of extreme thirst, due to the body’s inability to retain water. He or she will also complain of excessive urination, for a person with diabetes Insipidus can produce as much as three liters of urine a day. Diabetes Insipidus can also be an underlying cause of bedwetting, especially in children. With these â€Å"red flags†, the doctor has at least three tests at his disposal to diagnose the condition. The first is the simple urinalysis. The patient goes to the lab, urinates in a specimen cup and the liquid is analyzed. Not only is the specimen visually examined for color (Lighter color means higher water content)) but it is also critiqued for the amount of salt and waste products versus a like amount of pure distilled water. Again, the less salt and other ingredients that are present in urine, the greater the chance that Diabetes Insipidus is a likely aspect. We will write a custom essay sample on Diabetes insipidus or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now Of the two more complicated tests for the disease, the first is the fluid (water) deprivation test. The physician has the patient stop all fluid intake for a time period (usually two or three hours) prior to the test. His weight (before and after the deprivation) is examined, as is the volume of urine output during the procedure. Normally a urinalysis is performed before and after the deprivation so that the two samples can be compared. One health concern of this test is children and pregnant women, for doctors would be concerned if this patient lost more than five per cent of their body weight during the test. The deprivation test is especially helpful in determining whether Nephrogenic Diabetes Insipidus is the diagnosis, for the doctor will normally also order ADH tests (Mayo, 2012). In reference to pregnant women, there is another more rare form of Diabetes Insipidus, the Gestational variety, also known as Gestagenic DI. If at all, this normally occurs in the third (last) trimester and is caused by the demands of the pregnancy on the body. It is often genetic and if it has happened once, Gestagenic Diabetes Insipidus will reoccur in future pregnancies. Bedwetting is also common with the condition, based upon other factors in the body. The â€Å"Good† news for this is the condition is temporary, ceasing to exist around six weeks postpartum. Also the fetus is seldom harmed (WebMD, 2012). Genetics often plays a major role in Diabetes Insipidus and the physician will often ask the patient to provide him with a genetic screening, as a family history of polyuria can give the doctor a clearer diagnosis.