Unsuspecting Dietary Factors in Hyperkalemia: A Case Report on Why History Matters

INTRODUCTION: We present a case of hyperkalemia secondary to excessive dietary intake of hard caramel candies. CASE REPORT: An 88-year-old male who presented with acute abdominal pain and vomiting was found to have hyperkalemia of 6.9 milliequivalents per liter. He was stabilized, treated, and disch...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: McLendon, Kevin, Wiggins, Matthew, Hunt, Derek, Gauthier, Alex, Thoppil, Deepu
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: University of California Irvine, Department of Emergency Medicine publishing Western Journal of Emergency Medicine 2020
Materias:
ACOEP Case Report
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7220004/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32426685
http://dx.doi.org/10.5811/cpcem.2020.3.43095
Descripción
Sumario:INTRODUCTION: We present a case of hyperkalemia secondary to excessive dietary intake of hard caramel candies. CASE REPORT: An 88-year-old male who presented with acute abdominal pain and vomiting was found to have hyperkalemia of 6.9 milliequivalents per liter. He was stabilized, treated, and discharged the following day after resolution. The cause was identified as his daily consumption of 200 hard caramel candies. DISCUSSION: The patient had been consuming sugar-free candies, which induced a chronic diarrhea. This led to potassium wasting and augmentation of his home medications. When he transitioned to eating regular caramel candies, he retained too much potassium leading to his presentation. CONCLUSION: While often overlooked, dietary history is a crucial part of history-taking to ensure that the underlying cause for illness is discovered and addressed.

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