The Indian Diabetes Task Force, Diabetes India, has issued advice to doctors on various ways to treat hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) in COVID patients taking steroids. Journal Diabetes and Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research and Reviews. The documents include details on “Steroid and Hyperglycemia Awareness, Negative Consequences of Elevated Blood Glucose, and Discharge Advice”. Regarding the effects of steroids, the opinion states: “While it saves the lives of several people with Covid-19 infection (moderate to severe), its pharmacological effects increase blood sugar and present additional management challenges. He added, “There is also an ongoing concern about the inappropriateness of timing, dosage and duration of steroid use in COVID-19 in certain areas of the medical profession.
Therefore, understanding the risk-K-benefit ratio and learning how to control increases in blood sugar while using steroids is important. Many people with diabetes have contracted COVID, but experts say that uncontrolled diabetes along with COVID is one of the reasons behind the increase in black fungus cases. Director Dr. Randeep Guleria has also linked the rise in infections to irrational steroid use. Experts say diabetics who received COVID and were treated with steroids saw their blood sugar levels rise. Even people who did not have diabetes experienced spikes in their sugar levels when treated with steroids, and some even received insulin / oral medications for some time.
