Conditions and symptoms
What Is Ketoacidosis? A Diabetes Emergency Explained
Ketoacidosis · say it: kee-toh-as-ih-DOH-sisAlso written: ketoacidotic state, acidosis with ketones
Short answer
Ketoacidosis is a dangerous build-up of acids called ketones in the blood. It is a medical emergency, most often linked to diabetes.
What it means
Ketoacidosis happens when the body cannot use sugar for energy, so it breaks down fat too fast and makes large amounts of ketones. Ketones make the blood too acidic. Signs include feeling very thirsty, passing a lot of urine, nausea or vomiting, belly pain, fast or deep breathing, a fruity smell on the breath, drowsiness and confusion. It is a medical emergency needing urgent hospital care.
Labels for SGLT2 inhibitor diabetes medicines warn about ketoacidosis, which can sometimes occur even when blood sugar is not very high ('euglycemic ketoacidosis'). The risk is higher during illness, surgery, fasting or very low-carbohydrate diets, or after heavy alcohol use. The warning is telling you to seek urgent help for these symptoms and to ask whether the medicine should be paused before surgery or during illness.
The most common type is diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Ketoacidosis can also occur with heavy alcohol use or starvation. It is different from 'ketosis' on a low-carb diet, which produces ketones at much lower, non-dangerous levels.
Where you may see it
- SGLT2 inhibitor labels under 'Ketoacidosis'
- Hospital emergency records
- Urine or blood ketone test results
📄 How it looks on a report
Ketoacidosis: Assess patients who present with signs and symptoms of metabolic acidosis for ketoacidosis regardless of blood glucose level.
🙅 What it does not mean
- It is not the same as ketosis from a low-carb diet.
- A normal blood sugar does not rule it out on some diabetes medicines.
- A trace of ketones in urine does not always mean ketoacidosis; your doctor will interpret it.
🗒️ Questions to ask your doctor
💊 Medicines whose labels mention “Ketoacidosis”
Plain-English explanations of each medicine, from its official FDA label.
- Albuterol
A bronchodilator (a medicine that opens the airways) of the beta-2 adrenergic type. The FDA class is not listed, so this description comes from the label's own wording.
- Dapagliflozin
a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, a type of diabetes medicine
- Empagliflozin
a sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, a prescription medicine that works on sugar handling in the kidneys
- Glimepiride
a sulfonylurea, a type of oral medicine used to lower blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes
- Glipizide
a blood-sugar-lowering medicine of the sulfonylurea type
- Insulin Glargine
an insulin analog, a long-acting man-made insulin used to treat diabetes
- Metformin
a diabetes medicine of the biguanide type
- Pioglitazone
a diabetes medicine of the thiazolidinedione type
🔗 Read more from trusted sources
- “Ketoacidosis” on MedlinePlus ↗
US National Library of Medicine
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