“Our doctors specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of diabetes mellitus and other related conditions.

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition, characterized by a metabolic disorder of carbohydrates, fats and proteins. The main and common disorder in all forms of diabetes is hyperglycemia, i.e. elevated blood sugar.

It is distinguished into type I diabetes, type II diabetes, pregnancy diabetes and other rare types.

Type I diabetes mellitus is caused by the destruction of pancreatic B cells, which normally produce the hormone insulin. Thus, in this type of diabetes there is an absolute insulin deficiency and external administration of this hormone in necessary for the treatment of this disease.

Type II diabetes mellitus is caused by a combination of disorders in the discharge and action of insulin (tissue resistance to insulin).

Individuals with sugar values ​​higher than normal, but not so high to be considered diabetic are called pre-diabetic. The term indicates relatively high risk for future development of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Other types of diabetes treated at Athens Medical Group include:

Monogenic Diabetes
Gestational diabetes (Diabetes during pregnancy)
Steroid-induced Diabetes
Transplantation Diabetes

Chronic complications

Chronic complications of diabetes mellitus can be reduced by regulating blood sugar levels.The target organs affected by diabetes are the eyes, the kidneys, the nervous system and the vessels of the heart, brain and peripheral arteries.With regard to the eyes, so-called diabetic retinopathy is the damage of the small vessels of the eyes and without treatment it can even lead to blindness.

Testing by an ophthalmologist should begin early after the diagnosis of diabetes, well before the patient becomes symptomatic. It must be repeated at least once a year.

Inflammation of the kidneys is called diabetic nephropathy and is one of the most important causes of hemodialysis worldwide. We are in line with the latest diagnostic techniques that allow us to detect the onset of diabetes in the kidneys by measuring urine albumin in a random sample. Diabetic nephropathy is asymptomatic in the early stages of the disease and therefore diabetic patients should undergo at least an annual urinalysis for albumin excretion, along with blood tests for the kidneys (urea, creatinine, electrolytes), and should be repeated every six months if the results are pathological.

Diabetic neuropathy is distinguished into:

peripheral neuropathy, which usually manifests itself with symptoms of the lower extremities, such as numbness, pain, burning sensation
neuropathy of the autonomic nervous system, in which stomach disorders (gastroparesis), urinary tract disorders (diarrhea or constipation), orthostatic (postural) hypotension, erectile dysfunction and others may occur.

Infarction of the large vessels mainly affects the coronary heart vessels, carotid arteries and lower limb vessels, also known as macroangiopathy, and can manifest itself as angina or even acute myocardial infarction, stroke or intermittent claudication (pain in lower legs when walking).

Regular, annual, cardiology tests, such as electrocardiography, heart triplex, or stress test, are recommended for people with diabetes. Also testing of the carotid arteries and leg arteries should be performed once a year.

Testing of the arteries in the lower extremities is of particular importance, if there is pain when walking. The severity of the problem is assessed depending on the distance the patient can walk before the pain occurs. If a stenosis is found, the test needs to be resumed in less than one year (depending on the severity of the stenosis). In some cases, the patient needs to undergo angiography (digital, axial or magnetic) in order to decide on possible further intervention in a vessel with stenosis.

Diabetic foot

Diabetic foot is one of the most important complications of diabetes mellitus with a serious impact on the quality of life of the patient. Regular checking of the feet (at least once every six months) allows for the early detection of a foot that is likely to have ulceration.Such findings usually involve the occurrence of diabetic symmetrical peripheral neuropathy, which causes patients (due to the reduced perception of pain in the lower extremities) to underestimate some minor injuries to their feet. This condition, if combined with any existing arterial disease of the lower extremities, can eventually lead to limb amputation.

Obesity and Diabetes

Research has established that many people develop type 2 diabetes as a result of gaining too much weight.In many western societies, approximately one-third of the population tends to be obese, which is defined as people with body mass index (BMI) over 30 kg/m2. Another one-third of the population are considered overweight, with a BMI of 25-29.9 kg/m2, and is at risk for developing obesity in the future.At Athens Medical Group, we aim to provide evidenced-based, multidisciplinary and comprehensive care and treatment to overweight and obese adults.

We treat and evaluate patients with:

Obesity
Weight gain and regain after surgical treatment for obesity
Inability to maintain a stable, healthy weight

Athens Medical Group (AMG) is a reference center for weight-loss surgery treatments, ( Bariatric Surgery ).”