Remember that the information presented here is not intended to replace the care of your own doctor. Before making any changes in the management of your own illness, you should consult your physician or other qualified medical professionals.
Question
I am a 58 year old female who has type 2 diabetes treated with Actos and mixed insulin twice per day. This week I had a bad stomach virus. was awake all night throwing up and diarrhea. I went to my doctor the next morning who had to call an ambulance to take me to the ER because I had dehydrated. When I got there, they took blood and told my daughter that I had a blood alcohol level of 14 (I don't know if this was 1.4 or 14.0), but I don't drink at all and have not for 30 years. I have high blood pressure along with neuropathy, and I am in a research program so I am monitored very closely. I had not taken my medications that day because I was so sick.My doctor called the hospital to check on me, and the ER nurse told her I came in drunk. My doctor told them that was impossible. She had been my doctor for 11 years, knew me, my husband and my whole family, and knew I did not drink. She told the nurse she saw me in her office that morning and sent me to get some IVs because I was badly dehydrated from a virus.
I am stunned over this and need help in case this happens again. I do know that I felt like every nerve in my body hurt and just needed someone to help me, but I was not drunk. Can diabetes cause your blood alcohol level to rise?
Answer
There's a lot of speculation (mainly by trial lawyers defending drunken driving charges by people with diabetes) that diabetes can somehow influence the test that measures blood alcohol level. To the best of my knowledge, this is a lot of hooey. I think your physician should talk to the head of the laboratory, and find out more about what test was done, what the level was, whether there is interference from other substances, and what the odds were that someone else's blood sample was accidentally interchanged with yours.There's also the possibility that you were producing ketones because of the dehydration and lack of insulin. Ketones will cause the breath to smell like you were drinking. In addition, if the test they did in the ER was for acetone, this will be positive.
I too think this is outrageous and demeaning to say the least. I agree with Dr. Quick that your physician should call the hospital and sort out what happened. It sounds to me like the staff owe you an apology at the very least.
