diabetes - a project work carried in Ghana
CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1. BACKGROUND Diabetes mellitus (Greek diabetes , “a compass, and siphon”; Latin mellitus , “honey”) is a syndrome characterized by presence of chronic hyperglycaemia (raised blood sugar) due to defective insulin secretion, insulin action or both. It is estimated to afflict over 140 million people world wide (Wokoma, 2002). The long term effect of diabetes which include progressive development of the specific complication of retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy, neuropathy with microvascular disorders such as atherosclerosis are recognized major cause of mortality in the diabetic population and it is implicated in the circulatory disturbance seen in diabetes (Wokoma, 2002). Most cases of diabetes mellitus falls into three broad categories: type1, type 2 and gestational diabetes. Type 1 Diabetes mellitus is characterized by loss of the insulin-producing beta cells of the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas leading to insulin deficiency. Majority of the type