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Aug 4, 2023Keywords:
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Serum potassium response to intravenous potassium chloride in severely hypokalemic patients from Ethiopia: A case series
Abstract
Introduction : One out of five admitted patients has hypokalemia, among which a similar number has severe hypokalemia, a life-threatening condition. The therapy and response of severe hypokalemia is mainly based on findings from other countries and in Ethiopia patients may have lower than recommended potassium replacement requirements, and as there have been no publications, this series was conducted to guide the clinical management of severely hypokalemic patients.
Methods: A nine-month prospective case series in Bethzatha general hospital ICU in Ethiopia were reviewed.
Case presentation-Six patients with a median age of 45 years were included. The range of admission serum potassium level was (1 to 1.8) meq/l. An average of 383 meqs of intravenous potassium chloride was infused to raise the serum potassium level by 2.57 meq/l. To raise the serum potassium level by 0.27meq/l an average of 39.4meq of potassium chloride was needed.
Conclusion: There was more than a half dose reduction in the potassium chloride infusion required to raise the serum potassium to the same target in the literature.
