Chronic Disease Management

The clinical setting is characterized by numerous instances of diagnosis that will eventually result in chronic disease management. In many instances, this advancement will result from patient neglect of their well-being and lack of adherence to healthcare professionals’ recommendations. When such occurs, it means that the patient moves from a better position health-wise to a point where their well-being is threatened by disease. An acute case scenario was occurred in my clinical setting recently and it involved the diagnosis of gestational diabetes in patient x who came for a routine pregnancy checkup. 

Patient x was a pregnant thirty-seven year old female that came into the facility for normal pregnancy clinical checkup. She was seven months pregnant at the time and when she was in for her checkup, she presented numerous complaints that were indicative of gestational diabetes such as unusual thirst, excessive hunger, unusual fatigue and blurred vision. The physician recommended a urine test that revealed significant levels of sugar in her urine. Combined with the complaints she expressed, the physician concluded that she had gestational diabetes. The physician recommended self-care strategies such as exercise and a healthy diet. She was further put on anti-diabetic medication and insulin. 

Gestational diabetes can develop into chronic diabetes during or after pregnancy. Women who have gestational diabetes are at increased risk of developing diabetes later on in life. In many instances, such a progression would be caused by lack of self-care during gestational diabetes and an unhealthy lifestyle after pregnancy. Gestational pregnancy demonstrates an equal likelihood of advancing into type 1 or type 2 diabetes in these women. It may be difficult to control the development of gestational diabetes during pregnancy but it is possible for women to manage the condition to prevent the development of chronic diabetes which is often more difficult to manage and life threatening.