Endocrinology

Endocrine care is planned care, and diabetes creates two kinds of emergency that look nothing like each other. Blood sugar too high is the first. CDC says to go to the emergency room or call 911 right away if your blood sugar stays at 300 mg/dL or above, if your breath smells fruity, if you are vomiting and cannot keep food or drinks down, if you are having trouble breathing, or if you have multiple signs and symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis. It describes DKA as a serious complication of diabetes that can be life-threatening, says it usually develops slowly with early symptoms of being very thirsty and urinating a lot more than usual, and lists the more severe symptoms that can appear quickly: fast, deep breathing, dry skin and mouth, a flushed face, fruity-smelling breath, headache, muscle stiffness or aches, being very tired, nausea and vomiting, and stomach pain. Testing for ketones is part of that picture, and CDC gives it a callout of its own, headed High ketones? Call 911, which reads: high ketones can be an early sign of DKA, which is a medical emergency, so call 911 or go to the emergency room right away.

Blood sugar too low is the other, and it is the half this page used to leave out. NIDDK says that if your blood glucose level is very low your brain may stop working as it should, that you may lose consciousness or have a seizure, and that severe hypoglycemia is dangerous and needs to be treated right away. It defines severely low blood glucose as the point at which you cannot treat it yourself, and its instruction for the people around you is specific: it tells you to teach family, friends, and coworkers when and how to give you glucagon, and to tell them to call 911 right away after giving it, or if you do not have a glucagon emergency kit with you. For either kind, do not spend the time searching a directory.

Endocrinologists are physicians who manage conditions of the hormone-producing glands: diabetes that's proving hard to control, type 1 diabetes, thyroid conditions from overactive to underactive to nodules, osteoporosis and bone health, adrenal and pituitary conditions, and hormone questions that don't have a clear answer yet.

Much of endocrinology is detective work plus long-term partnership: interpreting lab patterns, adjusting management over time, and coordinating with your primary-care provider, who continues to handle day-to-day care.

Common paths to a referral include diabetes that stays uncontrolled despite a solid plan, newly found thyroid problems or nodules, abnormal hormone labs, or osteoporosis needing specialty input. A primary-care provider manages many of these conditions well and refers when specialist depth would help. ProviderQuoHealth shows credentials, accepted insurance, and accepting-new-patients status; the guides below cover how specialty referrals work for military families in the Fort Bragg area.