Blood ketone bodies in patients with recent-onset type 1 diabetes (a multicenter study).

Background: Insulin deficiency with glucagon excess leads to the release of ketone bodies (KBs) by the liver and excretion in the urine. So far, only KB monitoring in urine has been used during assessment of children with diabetes. Currently used nitroprusside strips for urine KB detection react only with acetoacetate (AcAc) and not with the most prevalent KB moiety - 3beta-hydroxybutyrate (3HB) - that is in equilibrium with AcAc (up to 10:1 ratio).