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Polyuria is the production of unusually large volumes of urine at abnormally frequent intervals, and is a symptom of both diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus. In diabetes mellitus, high blood sugar levels overwhelm the kidneys’ ability to reabsorb sugar, resulting in it ending up in the urine. In diabetes insipidus, the kidneys fail to conserve water due to an anomaly regarding the hormone that acts on the kidneys to make them conserve water in the body. Treatment involves giving the appropriate treatment for the specific type of diabetes.
Polyuria is a condition in which the body produces unusually large volumes of urine at abnormally frequent intervals. Diabetes and polyuria are linked because polyuria is one of the main symptoms of diabetes. While it is also associated with other medical problems, polyuria is a symptom of both diabetes mellitus and the lesser known and quite different diabetes insipidus. Polyuria occurs in both forms of diabetes mellitus, types 1 and 2. If any of the varieties of diabetes go untreated, polyuria can lead to severe dehydration, which could be severe in frail or elderly patients.
In diabetes mellitus, the blood sugar level is too high. Normally, when the kidneys filter the blood to make urine, they reabsorb all the sugar, returning it to the bloodstream. The sugar levels associated with diabetes mellitus are so high that they overwhelm the kidneys’ ability to reabsorb it, resulting in the sugar ending up in the urine. This sugar draws more water into the urine and this is how the large urine volumes seen in diabetes and polyuria occur.
The mechanism that causes polyuria in diabetes insipidus is different. The problem here is not with blood sugar levels. There is however an anomaly regarding the hormone that acts on the kidneys to make them conserve water in the body.
This water-conserving hormone is produced and stored in the brain. Some forms of brain damage, which could be caused by disease or accidental injury, can reduce the amount of hormone available. As a result, the kidneys fail to conserve water, allowing large amounts of it to pass out of the body in the form of very dilute urine. Another form of diabetes insipidus develops because the kidneys don’t respond to the hormone. This can be inherited or can result from kidney damage, sometimes caused by certain medications.
Along with polyuria, one of the other signs of diabetes can be extreme thirst, known as polydipsia. The two conditions often occur together and can be associated with dehydration. If a patient is excessively dehydrated, treatment of diabetes and polyuria may involve hospitalization for fluid administration. Otherwise, managing both diabetes and polyuria involves giving the appropriate treatment for the specific type of diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes mellitus is usually treated with insulin, which allows sugar to be absorbed from the bloodstream into cells. Type 2 can often be controlled by making dietary changes and getting more exercise, although medication is needed in some cases. Diabetes insipidus can be managed by giving an artificial version of the missing hormone, if appropriate, or by giving other medications.
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