HYPERKALEMIA

Course overview

HYPERKALEMIA IS DEFINED AS A SERUM OR PLASMA POTASSIUM LEVEL ABOVE THE UPPER LIMITS OF NORMAL, USUALLY GREATER THAN 5.0 MEQ/L TO 5.5 MEQ/L. WHILE MILD HYPERKALEMIA IS USUALLY ASYMPTOMATIC, HIGH POTASSIUM LEVELS MAY CAUSE LIFE-THREATENING CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS, MUSCLE WEAKNESS, OR PARALYSIS. SYMPTOMS USUALLY DEVELOP AT HIGHER LEVELS, 6.5 MEQ/L TO 7 MEQ/L, BUT THE RATE OF CHANGE IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE NUMERICAL VALUE. PATIENTS WITH CHRONIC HYPERKALEMIA MAY BE ASYMPTOMATIC AT INCREASED LEVELS, WHILE PATIENTS WITH DRAMATIC, ACUTE POTASSIUM SHIFTS MAY DEVELOP SEVERE SYMPTOMS AT LOWER ONES. INFANTS HAVE HIGHER BASELINE LEVELS THAN CHILDREN AND ADULTS. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE CAUSES, PATHOPHYSIOLOGY, AND PRESENTATION OF HYPERKALEMIA AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN ITS MANAGEMENT.