Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus following pentamidine therapy in a patient with AIDS.

Abstract

Pentamidine is known to cause severe dysglycaemia by damaging beta-cell function of the pancreas. The exact mechanism still remains unclear. We report the case of a 53-year-old man infected with the human immunodeficiency 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 insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus following pentamidine therapy has been reported, but long-term observations are rare.