SKIN MANIFESTATIONS AS A REASON FOR EARLY DETECTION OF TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS: A CASE REPORT
Arben EMURLAI, Andrej PETROV, Martina GJORGJIEVSKA KAMCEVA
Abstract
Diabetes mellitus type 2 is actually the most common type of diabetes that occurs most often after the age of forty and is the result of insensitivity of cells to insulin. Its occurrence is associated with obesity, increased cholesterol levels, triglycerides, and elevated blood pressure. The onset is gradual and sometimes requires a longer period of time to be diagnosed.
Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common diseases in Western industrialized nations with an estimated 300 million people affected worldwide. Skin changes can also develop during diabetes mellitus, but sometimes they are related to internal organs and their complications or occur as a side effect of antidiabetic therapy. The worldwide prevalence according to National Diabetes Data Group in 2020 was 7.4% with an estimated 385 million affected adults and is expected to increase to 424 million by 2025. In the following, we present a case report of a 60-year-old female patient, who is a primary school teacher by profession and has been standing most of the time for 20 years. She comes for examination due to the appearance of red, round skin changes in the upper parts of the upper arm, both scapulae and the lower third of the lower legs, itching is present, and the changes have appeared on several occasions in the last six months. She also reports cramps in both lower legs, especially at night, a feeling of spinning in the legs and occasional pain in the calves, and complains of occasional itching all over the body. She has tried various modalities of local and systemic therapy with occasional relief of symptoms and their recurrence. On clinical examination, small erythematous macular efflorescence are noted in places with visible reticular veins in the lower legs.
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