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Ency. home > Disease > D > Diabetes insipidus - central

Diabetes insipidus - central   

Overview | Symptoms | Treatment | Prevention

Alternative names:

Central diabetes insipidus

Definition:

a condition marked by extreme thirst and excessive urine output caused by a deficiency of a hormone that limits the amount of urine made (called antidiuretic hormone or vasopressin). see also diabetes insipidus - nephrogenic.

Causes and Risks

Central diabetes insipidus is a rare condition caused by damage to the hypothalamus or pituitary gland because of surgery, infection, tumor, injury to the head; sometimes the cause remains unknown. Normally, the hypothalamus in the brain synthesizes vasopressin, a hormone that causes the kidneys to conserve water by making concentrated urine.

In diabetes insipidus, there is a lack of vasopressin. Without vasopressin, the kidneys fail to reabsorb excess filtered water. This results in a rapid loss of water from the body in the form of dilute urine.

A person with diabetes insipidus drinks large quantities of water, driven by extreme thirst, to compensate for the water loss. Risk factors are related to the cause. The incidence is 1 out of 10,000 people.

Ency. home > Disease > D > Diabetes insipidus - central

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