Compensation & Hypernatremia
The premise in many disorders, especially acid/base, is that a compensatory change never fully corrects the underlying disorder.
In hypernatremia, it's the exact opposite...
The premise in many disorders, especially acid/base, is that a compensatory change never fully corrects the underlying disorder.
In hypernatremia, it's the exact opposite...
A patient with metabolic acidosis, for example, should have respiratory compensation that ALMOST, but not fully, normalizes the pH.
It's the exact opposite with hypernatremia...
It's the exact opposite with hypernatremia...
The drive to drink H20 is a near-flawless compensatory mechanism, that corrects even the most monumental water loss.
We are talking liters and liters of water loss.
Hypernatremia ONLY occurs with that compensatory mechanism is lost
So...
We are talking liters and liters of water loss.
Hypernatremia ONLY occurs with that compensatory mechanism is lost
So...
The first step in approaching hypernatremia is to ask WHY this compensatory mechanism is lost
In other words:
Why is the patient no longer able to drink H20?
Only then do we move on to study
1. How they are losing H20, or even more rarely
2. Consuming hypertonic solutions
In other words:
Why is the patient no longer able to drink H20?
Only then do we move on to study
1. How they are losing H20, or even more rarely
2. Consuming hypertonic solutions
For a brilliant discussion of hypernatremia check it this @thecurbsiders episode by @kidney_boy
bit.ly/3dRrGS4
bit.ly/3dRrGS4
