Diabetes Heart Disease and Stroke Disability


Diabetes Heart Disease Disability

Diabetes Stroke Disability

Diabetes heart disease and stroke complications affect many people living with diabetes Minnesota. If you have diabetes, you are at least twice as likely as someone who does not have diabetes to have heart disease or a stroke. People with diabetes also are at risk to develop heart disease or have strokes at a younger age than other people. If you are middle-aged and have type 2 diabetes, certain studies have found that your chance of having a heart attack is as high as someone without diabetes who has already had one heart attack. Women who have not gone through menopause usually have less risk of heart disease than men of the same age. But women of all ages with diabetes have an increased risk of heart disease because diabetes cancels out the protective effects of being a woman in her child-bearing years.

People with diabetes who have already had one heart attack run an even greater risk of having a second one. In addition, heart attacks in people with diabetes are more serious and more likely to result in death. High blood glucose levels over time can lead to increased deposits of fatty materials on the insides of the blood vessel walls. These deposits may affect blood flow, increasing the chance of clogging and hardening of blood vessels (atherosclerosis).

What types of heart and blood vessel disease occur in people with diabetes?

Two major types of heart and blood vessel disease, (cardiovascular disease), are commonly found in people with diabetes: coronary artery disease (CAD) and cerebral vascular disease. Diabetics also have a higher risk for heart failure. Narrowing or blockage of the blood vessels in the legs, (peripheral arterial disease), can also occur in people with diabetes.

Coronary Artery Disease

Coronary artery disease, (ischemic heart disease), is caused by a hardening or thickening of the walls of the blood vessels that go to your heart. Your blood supplies oxygen and other materials your heart needs for normal functioning. If fatty deposits block the blood vessels to your heart causing them to narrow, the blood supply is reduced or cut off, resulting in a heart attack.

Cerebral Vascular Disease

Cerebral vascular disease affects blood flow to the brain, leading to strokes and TIAs. It is caused by narrowing, blocking, or hardening of the blood vessels that go to the brain or by high blood pressure.

Diabetes Stroke Disability

A stroke results when the blood supply to the brain is suddenly cut off, which can occur when a blood vessel in the brain or neck is blocked or bursts. Brain cells are then deprived of oxygen and die. A stroke can result in problems with speech or vision or can cause weakness or paralysis. Most strokes are caused by fatty deposits or blood clots—jelly-like clumps of blood cells—that narrow or block one of the blood vessels in the brain or neck. A blood clot may stay where it formed or can travel within the body. People with diabetes are at increased risk for strokes caused by blood clots.

A stroke may also be caused by a bleeding blood vessel in the brain. Called an aneurysm, a break in a blood vessel can occur as a result of high blood pressure or a weak spot in a blood vessel wall.

TIAs

TIAs are caused by a temporary blockage of a blood vessel to the brain. This blockage leads to a brief, sudden change in brain function, such as temporary numbness or weakness on one side of the body. Sudden changes in brain function also can lead to loss of balance, confusion, blindness in one or both eyes, double vision, difficulty speaking, or a severe headache. However, most symptoms disappear quickly and permanent damage is unlikely. If symptoms do not resolve in a few minutes, rather than a TIA, the event could be a stroke. The occurrence of a TIA means that a person is at risk for a stroke sometime in the future. See page 3 for more information on risk factors for stroke.

Heart Failure

Heart failure is a chronic condition in which the heart cannot pump blood properly—it does not mean that the heart suddenly stops working. Heart failure develops over a period of years, and symptoms can get worse over time. People with diabetes have at least twice the risk of heart failure as other people. One type of heart failure is congestive heart failure, in which fluid builds up inside body tissues. If the buildup is in the lungs, breathing becomes difficult.

Blockage of the blood vessels and high blood glucose levels also can damage heart muscle and cause irregular heart beats. People with damage to heart muscle, a condition called cardiomyopathy, may have no symptoms in the early stages, but later they may experience weakness, shortness of breath, a severe cough, fatigue, and swelling of the legs and feet. Diabetes can also interfere with pain signals normally carried by the nerves, explaining why a person with diabetes may not experience the typical warning signs of a heart attack.

Peripheral Arterial Disease

Another condition related to heart disease and common in people with diabetes is peripheral arterial disease (PAD). With this condition, the blood vessels in the legs are narrowed or blocked by fatty deposits, decreasing blood flow to the legs and feet. PAD increases the chances of a heart attack or stroke occurring. Poor circulation in the legs and feet also raises the risk of amputation. Sometimes people with PAD develop pain in the calf or other parts of the leg when walking, which is relieved by resting for a few minutes.

Fields Law diabetes disability attorneys will assist you in getting the medical records and supporting documentation you need to provide the SSA with evidence of your diabetes nerve damage disability. If you are unable to work because of diabetes heart disease or stroke complications we can help you apply for social security benefits. If you have been denied disability benefits we can appeal your case.

We offer a Free case review. Our Minnesota diabetes disability attorneys understand how difficult it is to have heart disease or suffer from a stroke and be denied disability benefits when you are unable to work. There are never any fees unless we win your disability case.

Fields Law MN Disability Center

We are a Minnesota Disability Law Firm dedicated to helping people in Minnesota get the Social Security Disability benefits they deserve.

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