05-25-2007, 05:59 AM
Why is hypertonicity a cause of hyperkalemia? I would imagine it would cause hypokalemia due to an increased offer of sodium to the distal tubule to change for K. Any thoughts?
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Hyperkalemia - knight
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05-25-2007, 06:09 AM
Hypertonicity may lead to hyperkalemia by 2 mechanisms: loss of intracellular water, resulting in an increased intracellular potassium concentration, favoring a gradient for potassium to move out of the cells; and, as water exits the cells, potassium is swept along with ''solvent drag.'' The most common cause of hyperosmolality is hyperglycemia in uncontrolled diabetes mellitus. Other conditions with hypertonicity are hypernatremia and hypertonic mannitol.
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