OBJECTIVE To review the metabolism and function of potassium and causes and management of hypokalaemia. DATA SOURCES A review of studies reported from 1966 to 1998 and identified through a MEDLINE search of the English-language literature of hypokalaemia. SUMMARY OF REVIEW Potassium is predominantly an intracellular ion that contributes to approximately 50% of the intracellular fluid osmola...

BACKGROUND & AIMS Evidence has suggested that low serum potassium concentration or low dietary potassium intake can result in many metabolic disorders. Our objective was to evaluate the association between serum potassium level and risk of prevalent metabolic syndrome. METHODS We conducted a cross-sectional study in 10,341 participants aged 40 years or older. Metabolic syndrome was defined ac...

Secondary hyperkalemic paralysis is an uncommon but potentially life-threatening consequence of drug-induced disease. We report a case of a 53-year-old female with history of chronic kidney disease presenting to the emergency department with a one-day history of upper and lower extremity weakness and paresthesias. Serum potassium concentration on admission was greater than 8 mEq/L, and serum cr...

The functional significance of cardiac ATP-sensitive potassium channels remains controversial because of the discrepancy between the low levels ofATP at which activation of the channels occurs and the much higher levels of ATP maintained during myocardial ischemia. We studied the effects of (+)-lactate, which accumulates in large quantity as a result of increased glycolysis during ischemia, on ...

A simple, specific and accurate reverse phase liquid chromatographic method was developed for the simultaneous determination of losartan potassium and ramipril in table dosage forms. A hypersil ODS C18, 4.6x250 mm, 5 mum column in isocratic mode, with mobile phase acetonitrile:methanol:10 mM tetra butyl ammonium hydrogen sulphate in water in the ratio of 30:30:40% v/v/v was used. The flow rate ...

Albino rats weighing 160 to 175 gm. were fed a complete synthetic diet containing 0.003 per cent potassium and 0.7 per cent sodium for 40 days. Controls were given the same diet plus adequate added potassium. 1. Data from analyses of serum and skeletal muscle showed (a) a fall in serum chloride concentration and an increase in serum carbon dioxide concentration and pH in the potassium-deficient...

Astrocytes express potassium and water channels to support dynamic regulation of potassium homeostasis. Potassium kinetics can be modulated by aquaporin-4 (AQP4), the essential water channel for astrocyte water permeability regulation. We investigated whether extracellular potassium ([K(+)](o)) can regulate astrocyte water permeability and the mechanisms of such an effect. Studies were performe...

Smooth muscle cells, dispersed from the circumflex coronary artery of the guinea pig, were studied with the whole-cell configuration of the patch-clamp. The resting potential of about -40 mV was superimposed by spikelike hyperpolarizations (SLHs) up to -20 mV amplitude. The SLHs resulted from spontaneous transient outward currents (spontaneous TOCs) measured under voltage-clamp (-40 or -50 mV)....

INTRODUCTION High sodium intake and low potassium intake, which can contribute to hypertension and risk of cardiovascular disease, may be related to the availability of healthful food in neighborhood stores. Despite evidence linking food environment with diet quality, this relationship has not been evaluated in the United States. The modified retail food environment index (mRFEI) provides a com...

Six volunteers underwent i.v. regional anaesthesia on two occasions using 0.5% prilocaine 40 ml with potassium 0 or 4 mmol litre-1. Addition of potassium produced more rapid sensory blockade to pinprick at five of the six sites tested, although this was statistically significant at only one site (P less than 0.05) and more rapid sensory blockade to pinch with Allis forceps at four of the six si...