Hyponatremia (patient information): Difference between revisions

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==Who is at highest risk?==
==Who is at highest risk?==
Although hyponatremia can develop in a variety of disease conditions or due to iatrogenic causes, certain patient cohorts like those with acute or chronic renal failure (inability to excrete water), congestive heart failure, cirrhosis (ADH release due to low effective circulatory volume) are very prone to develop hyponatremia.
Although hyponatremia can develop in a variety of disease conditions or due to iatrogenic causes, certain patient cohorts like those with acute or chronic renal failure (inability to excrete water), congestive heart failure, cirrhosis (ADH release due to low effective circulatory volume) are very prone to develop hyponatremia.


==Diagnosis==
==Diagnosis==

Revision as of 14:05, 7 July 2021

For the WikiDoc page for this topic, click here

Hyponatremia

Overview

What are the symptoms?

What are the causes?

Who is at highest risk?

Diagnosis

When to seek urgent medical care?

Treatment options

Where to find medical care for Hyponatremia?

Prevention

What to expect (Outlook/Prognosis)?

Possible complications

Hyponatremia On the Web

Ongoing Trials at Clinical Trials.gov

Images of Hyponatremia

Videos on Hyponatremia

FDA on Hyponatremia

CDC on Hyponatremia

Hyponatremia in the news

Blogs on Hyponatremia

Directions to Hospitals Treating Hyponatremia

Risk calculators and risk factors for Hyponatremia

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

Hyponatremia is a metabolic condition in which there is not enough sodium (salt) in the body fluids outside the cells.

What are the symptoms of Hyponatremia?

Common symptoms include:

What causes Hyponatremia?

Sodium is found mostly in the body fluids outside the cells. It is very important for maintaining blood pressure. Sodium is also needed for nerves and muscles to work properly.

When the amount of sodium in fluids outside cells drops, water moves into the cells to balance the levels. This causes the cells to swell with too much water. Although most cells can handle this swelling, brain cells cannot, because the skull bones confine them. Brain swelling causes most of the symptoms of hyponatremia.

In hyponatremia, the imbalance of water to salt is caused by one of three conditions:

  • Euvolemic hyponatremia -- total body water increases, but the body's sodium content stays the same
  • Hypervolemic hyponatremia -- both sodium and water content in the body increase, but the water gain is greater
  • Hypovolemic hyponatremia -- water and sodium are both lost from the body, but the sodium loss is greater

Hyponatremia is the most common electrolyte disorder in the United States.

Causes of hyponatremia include:

Who is at highest risk?

Although hyponatremia can develop in a variety of disease conditions or due to iatrogenic causes, certain patient cohorts like those with acute or chronic renal failure (inability to excrete water), congestive heart failure, cirrhosis (ADH release due to low effective circulatory volume) are very prone to develop hyponatremia.

Diagnosis

The health care provider will perform a complete physical examination to help determine the cause of your symptoms. Blood and urine tests will be done.

The following laboratory tests can confirm hyponatremia:

When to seek urgent medical care?

Hyponatremia can be a life-threatening emergency. Call your health care provider if you have symptoms of this condition.

Treatment options

The cause of hyponatremia must be diagnosed and treated. In some cases, cancer may cause the condition, and radiation, chemotherapy, or surgery to remove the tumor may correct the sodium imbalance.

Other treatments depend on the specific type of hyponatremia.

Treatments may include:

  • Fluids through a vein (IV)
  • Medication to relieve symptoms
  • Water restriction

Medications to avoid

Patients diagnosed with hyponatremia should avoid using the following medications:

  • Acebutolol
  • Tolvaptan
    If you have been diagnosed with hyponatremia, consult your physician before starting or stopping any of these medications.


Where to find medical care for Hyponatremia?

Prevention of Hyponatremia

Treating the condition that is causing hyponatremia can help. If you play any sports, drink fluids that contain electrolytes (sports drinks). Drinking only water while you take part in high-energy athletic events can lead to acute hyponatremia.

What to expect (Outlook/Prognosis)?

The outcome depends on the condition that is causing the problem. In general, acute hyponatremia, which occurs in less than 48 hours, is more dangerous than hyponatremia that develops slowly over time. When sodium levels fall slowly over a period of days or weeks (chronic hyponatremia), the brain cells have time to adjust and swelling is minimal.

Possible complications

Sources


Template:WikiDoc Sources

  1. Rodriguez M, Hernandez M, Cheungpasitporn W, Kashani KB, Riaz I, Rangaswami J; et al. (2019). "Hyponatremia in Heart Failure: Pathogenesis and Management". Curr Cardiol Rev. 15 (4): 252–261. doi:10.2174/1573403X15666190306111812. PMC 8142352 Check |pmc= value (help). PMID 30843491.
  2. Dong, X.; Leppik, I. E.; White, J.; Rarick, J. (2005). "Hyponatremia from oxcarbazepine and carbamazepine". Neurology. 65 (12): 1976–1978. doi:10.1212/01.wnl.0000188819.45330.90. ISSN 0028-3878.
  3. Verrotti, Alberto; Tambucci, Renato; Basti, Claudia; Maresca, Maria; Coppola, Giangennaro (2016). "Update on the role of eslicarbazepine acetate in the treatment of partial-onset epilepsy". Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment: 1251. doi:10.2147/NDT.S86765. ISSN 1178-2021.
  4. Gupta E, Kunjal R, Cury JD (2015). "Severe Hyponatremia Due to Valproic Acid Toxicity". J Clin Med Res. 7 (9): 717–9. doi:10.14740/jocmr2219w. PMC 4522991. PMID 26251688.