INSULIN-DEPENDENT DIABETES-MELLITUS FOLLOWING PENTAMIDINE THERAPY IN A PATIENT WITH AIDS

Pentamidine is known to cause severe dysglycaemia by damaging beta-cel l function of the pancreas. The exact mechanism still remains unclear. We report the case of a 53-year-old man infected with the human immun odeficiency virus who developed, insulin-dependent permanent diabetes mellitus 3 days after starting intravenous treatment with pentamidine for pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Discharged from hospital the daily need of insulin increased continuously over one year now requiring an average dose of 80 units per day. So far, a number of cases of insuli n-dependent diabetes mellitus following pentamidine therapy has been r eported, but long-term observations are rare.