T1D glossary

Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA)

DKA is a serious and life-threatening complication in which the body, short of insulin, breaks down fat for fuel and ketones build up in the blood. It is most common in type 1 diabetes. ADA lists illness and missed insulin doses among the triggers, and asks people at risk to check ketones when those are present, especially above 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L). (CDC; ADA Standards of Care 2026, section 6)

Worked example

A pump site fails overnight and a stomach bug starts in the morning: two of the triggers ADA names. Glucose has been over 250 mg/dL (13.9 mmol/L) for hours, well past the 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) mark at which ADA asks for a ketone check.

Related terms

• Ketones
• Time above range

Sources, quoted

• CDC: “Overview DKA is a serious complication of diabetes that can be life-threatening.”
• CDC: “DKA develops when your body doesn't have enough insulin to allow blood sugar into your cells for use as energy.”
• CDC: “Instead, your liver breaks down fat for fuel, a process that produces acids called ketones.”
• CDC: “DKA is most common among people with type 1 diabetes.”
• ADA Standards of Care 2026, section 6: “Individuals at risk for DKA should measure ketones in the presence of symptoms and potential precipitating factors (e.g., illness, missed insulin doses, eating disorders), particularly if glucose levels exceed 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L).”

Every quote above is checked against its source page before each update of this site; last checked 2026-10-06. The worked example is our own arithmetic. This page explains a term; it is not advice for a person's treatment.