INTRODUCTION
- Hypernatremia is a medical term.
- It describes having too much sodium in the blood.
- Our body’s sodium is mostly found in the blood.
- It is an important nutrient for the proper functioning of our body.
- Sodium is also a necessary part of the body’s lymph fluids and cells.
- In some cases, hypernatremia can be mild and doesn’t cause serious problems.
- It’s important to correct high sodium levels to reverse problems caused by hypernatremia.
HOW CAN THE SODIUM LEVELS BE CONTROLLED
- Hypernatremia mainly occurs due to too much water loss or too much sodium gain in the body.
- As a result, there is too little water available for the amount of total sodium in the body.
- This can affect the regulation of the concentration of sodium in the blood.
- Dramatic changes in thirst and changes in urine concentration cause changes in the fluid.
- In our body thirst and urine concentration are triggered by receptors in the brain.
- The receptors recognize the need for fluid or sodium correction.
- This increases the water intake and changes the amount of sodium passed in the urine.
- By increasing the water intake, this disease can rapidly be corrected.
SYMPTOMS
- Excessive thirst is the main symptom of hypernatremia.
- The symptoms include extreme fatigue and lack of energy, and possibly confusion.
- These symptoms can be named as lethargy.
- Sodium is also important for muscles and nerves to work.
- Due to this chronic cases also cause muscle twitching or spasms.
- When the sodium concentration elevates severely, it can cause seizures and coma.
- The severe symptoms are rare.
RISK FACTORS
- Older adults have a high risk of hypernatremia.
- This is because as we grow older, we have a decreased sense of thirst.
- Dehydration, severe watery diarrhea, vomiting, fever, certain medications, poorly controlled diabetes, larger burn areas on the skin, kidney disease are certain medical condition can also increase the risk of hypernatremia.
DIAGNOSIS
- This can be diagnosed through blood tests.
- High levels of sodium along with urine concentration can be identified by urine tests.
TREATMENT
- According to the speed of onset, a treatment plan is determined.
- The treatment involves correcting the fluid and sodium balance in your body.
- Rapidly developing hypernatremia is treated more aggressively.
- By increasing fluid intake, mild cases can be cured.
- An IV drip is connected to the patient in case of severe hypernatremia.
- This supplies fluid to your blood intravenously.
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