“Dermopathy: The Skin Symptoms of Diabetes You Need to Know”

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — Diabetes is a lifelong condition that occurs when a person’s blood sugar levels become too high. There are two types of diabetes, namely type 1 and type 2.

Reported Express, Tuesday (9/5/2023), type 1 diabetes has no known cause. Meanwhile, type 2 is often associated with being overweight or inactive, although genetic factors may play a role.

People with diabetes, type 1 or 2, must adjust their lifestyle by following a certain diet, taking medication, and having regular check-ups to stay healthy. Like any medical condition, it gets faster diabetic symptoms known, the sooner treatment can be sought.

There are some common signs of diabetes that can be an alarm. For example, feeling thirsty and frequently wanting to urinate.

Other symptoms include feeling very tired, weight loss and loss of muscle mass, itching around the penis or vagina, or frequent mouth sores, and blurred vision. If you experience any of the symptoms of diabetes, you should talk to your GP.

However, there are lesser known symptoms that can appear on the skin. According to the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, United States, diabetes-related dermopathy is a potential complication of type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

The spots usually appear on the shins, although they can be found anywhere on the body. The color of the spots can be pink, red or brown.

Cleveland Clinic explains that dermopati Diabetes-associated (often called ‘dry spots’) are a fairly common skin condition that affects people living with diabetes, including type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes-associated dermopathy looks like small, round, pink, reddish or brown patches on the skin. The patches can look scar-like and indented.

“The patches are generally a centimeter to 2.5 centimeters in size. The spots are harmless and don’t itch, ooze, or cause pain,” says the Cleveland Clinic.

Other distinguishing features of small patches include, round or oval, slightly indented into your skin and/or slightly scaly, bilateral (meaning they appear on the skin of both your legs or arms at the same time). Spots can appear for months at a time and according to the American Diabetes Association they are often mistaken for age spots.