Serum lipid levels in hyperosmolar non-ketotic diabetic coma.

Levels of serum lipids were measured in two patients with hyperosmolar non-ketotic diabetic coma. Each lipid fraction was raised in a patient with severe hyperglycaemia and the degree of disturbance was less in a patient with moderate hyperglycaemia. The studies suggest that a block in the hepatic uptake of free fatty acids is not the explanation for the lack of ketosis.