What Are the Common Lack of Potassium Side Effects?

The concentration of potassium in human serum is only 3.5 5.5mmol / L, but it is necessary for life activities. The main role of potassium in the human body is to maintain acid-base balance, participate in energy metabolism and maintain the normal function of neuromuscular. When the body lacks potassium, it can cause general weakness, fatigue, weakened heartbeat, dizziness, and severe potassium deficiency can also lead to death of respiratory muscle paralysis. In addition, low potassium can slow gastrointestinal motility, cause intestinal paralysis, increase anorexia, and appear nausea, vomiting, and abdominal distension.

Basic Information

Visiting department

Internal medicine

Common causes

Decreased potassium intake, excessive potassium excretion, extracellular potassium transferred into cells

Common symptoms

General weakness, fatigue, arrhythmia, dizziness, etc.

Causes of potassium deficiency

1. Reduced potassium intake

The general diet is rich in potassium, so as long as you can eat normally, the body will not be deficient in potassium. Patients with gastrointestinal obstruction, coma, and fasting for a long period of time after surgery cannot eat. If these patients are not fed with potassium at the same time or the potassium supplement is insufficient, it can lead to potassium deficiency and hypokalemia. If inadequate intake is the only cause, the degree of potassium deficiency can be relieved by the kidney's potassium retention function within a certain period of time. When the potassium intake is insufficient, the urine potassium excretion can be reduced to less than 20mmol / L within 4-7 days. In 7 to 10 days, it can be reduced to 5 to 10 mmol / L (normally, urine potassium excretion is 38 to 150 mmol / L).

2. Excessive potassium excretion

(1) Potassium loss through the gastrointestinal tract This is the most important cause of potassium loss in children. It is often found in patients with severe diarrhea and vomiting, who have a large amount of digestive fluid loss.

(2) Loss of potassium through kidney This is the most important cause of potassium loss in adults. Common factors that cause increased potassium excretion in kidneys are: long-term continuous use or excessive use of diuretics; certain kidney diseases; adrenal corticosteroids More; anions that are not easily reabsorbed in the distally curved tubules; magnesium deficiency; alkalosis.

(3) Loss of potassium through the skin

3. Extracellular potassium transfer to intracellular

When extracellular potassium is transferred into cells, hypokalemia can occur, but the total amount of potassium in the body is not reduced.

Clinical manifestations of potassium deficiency

Potassium deficiency can reduce the excitability of muscles, make muscle contraction and relaxation not smooth, and easily burnout. In addition, it can hinder the peristalsis of the bowel and cause constipation; it can also cause a heart attack. When the body's potassium intake is insufficient, sodium will carry a lot of water into the cells, causing the cells to edema and cause the cells to rupture. A lack of potassium in the blood can cause high blood sugar, which can lead to hyperglycemia. In addition, potassium deficiency causes the most serious damage to the heart, and potassium deficiency may be one of the leading causes of death from heart disease in humans.

When the body lacks potassium, it can cause general weakness, fatigue, arrhythmia, dizziness, and severe potassium deficiency can also lead to death of respiratory muscle paralysis. In addition, low potassium can slow gastrointestinal motility, cause intestinal paralysis, increase anorexia, and appear nausea, vomiting, and abdominal distension.

Treatment of potassium deficiency

The prevention and treatment of low potassium is based on the treatment of the cause of potassium supplementation. Clinically, oral or intravenous rehydration can be used to add a certain amount of 10% potassium chloride solution. Eating more potassium-rich foods is also a safe and effective method, especially eating more fruits and vegetables. Potassium-rich fruits include bananas, strawberries, citrus, grapes, grapefruit, watermelon, etc. Spinach, yam, edamame, amaranth, green onion and other vegetables are also rich in potassium; soy beans, mung beans, broad beans, kelp, seaweed, yellow fish, chicken , Milk, cornmeal, etc. also contain a certain amount of potassium. Various fruit juices, especially orange juice, are also rich in potassium, and can replenish moisture and energy.