DKA is way more than “the sugar is high.”

In this episode of That Paramedic Podcast, we break down diabetic ketoacidosis from the ground up: what causes it, why ketones and acidosis develop, why patients pee out half their circulating volume, and why potassium is the quiet psychopath nobody should ignore.

We also get into Kussmaul respirations, why a DKA patient’s crazy respiratory rate may be the thing keeping them alive, what makes intubation so dangerous, and how Alberta EMS approaches these patients in the prehospital setting.

Plus, we take a trip back to the good old days of medicine when treatment for diabetes included starvation diets, bicarbonate, and a healthy dose of “well… hopefully this works.”

Expect physiology, EMS pearls, dark humour, old-timey medicine, and several reminders not to steal an ...