Treatment for hypoglycaemia
Treat hypoglycaemia due to ethanol intoxication promptly, aiming for a blood glucose concentration of 4 to 8 mmol/L. If the patient is awake, give oral glucose (eg glucose paste or drinks) and encourage the patient to eat food, especially complex carbohydrates. If the patient is drowsy or unconscious, give an intravenous bolus injection of glucose. Administration of glucose or carbohydrates in patients with thiamine deficiency can precipitate Wernicke encephalopathy. So, for patients with hypoglycaemia at risk of thiamine deficiency (eg alcohol dependence, severely malnourished), promptly give glucose, followed immediately by thiamine. See Thiamine supplementation and Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome in alcohol dependence for additional advice.
For treatment of hypoglycaemia in adults with ethanol intoxication, use:
1glucose 50% 50 mL intravenously by slow injection, via a large peripheral vein glucose
OR
1glucose 10% 250 mL intravenously by slow injection, via a large peripheral vein. glucose
For treatment of hypoglycaemia in children with ethanol intoxication, use:
glucose 10% 2.5 mL/kg intravenously by slow injection, via a large peripheral vein. glucose