Many patients who we operate on have diabetes as well. Complications are more common in patients with diabetes and we need to know how to look after their blood sugar, where to put them on the operating list, how to deal with the nil by mouth periods, how to prescribe insulin and when and special precautions which we need to take when arranging imaging for these patients.
Naomi Laskar talks to Roger Stanworth about how to look after a patient with diabetes on a surgical ward. Essential listening for any medical student or surgical trainee.
Next time - how to recognise and deal with diabetic emergencies presenting on a surgical ward