La Nouvelle presse médicale
-
Letter Case Reports
[Extra-dural spinal hematoma and atypical lumbo-sciatica].
-
Letter Case Reports
[Latent renal cancer disclosed by a spontaneous subcapsular hematoma].
-
Chronic alcoholism is a frequently unrecognized cause of ketoacidosis in nondiabetic patients. Seven episodes of alcoholic ketoacidosis were observed in three patients. No consciousness disturbances were present. ⋯ All ketosis episodes followed an increase of alcohol ingestion associated with one to four week-starvation and vomiting; however, at the time of admission, alcohol was weakly increased in blood. In the four episodes where diagnosis was correct, ketoacidosis was rapidly corrected without insulin administration. In conclusion, in some nondiabetic subjects, the occurence of alcohol prolongated ingestion together with starvation and vomiting is responsible for ketoacidosis; because alcoholic ketoacidosis has often a mild clinical expression, its true prevalence is underestimated; insulin administration is not required.