Approach to a Patient with Hyponatremia in ICU

Volume 3, Jan 2014

Mukesh Kumar Gupta, MD, FNB, Jeetendra Sharma, MD, IFCC

•  Hyponatremia, defined as a serum sodium concentration <135 mmol/L, is the most common disorder of body fluid and electrolyte balance encountered in clinical practice. It occurs in up to 30% of hospitalized patients and can lead to a wide spectrum of clinical symptoms, from subtle to severe or even life threatening. Hyponatremia is a powerful prognostic factor in patients with heart failure and cirrhosis.