Dysnatremia in hospitalized elderly patients

Abstract

Dysnatremia is the most common electrolyte disorder in hospitalized patients; it encompasses hyponatremic and hypernatremic conditions. Dysnatremia is also a common finding at Intensive Care Unit admission. Abnormal serum sodium concentrations are known to adversely affect physiologic function and an increasing evidence suggests that dysnatremia may be associated with adverse outcome.Aim: to detect the prevalence of dysnatremia in Geriatric patients, and also to evaluate association between dysnatremia and in-hospital mortality in Intensive Care Unit older patients.Results: the current study found that in hospitalized elderly participants, 23.8% had hyponatremia (6.4%,9.2%, 8.2% had mild, moderate, severe hyponatremia, respectively), 6.8% had hypernatremia (2.6%, 2%, 2.2% had mild, moderate, severe hypernatremia, respectively) (p value= 0.000). while prevalence of dysnatremia was higher in the ICU patients, 28.2% had hyponatremia (7.6%, 9.8%, 10.8% had mild, moderate, severe hyponatremia, respectively), 9.6% had hypernatremia (3.3%, 3.0%, 3.3% had mild, moderate, severe hypernatremia, respectively) (p value= 0.000). Intensive Care Unit hospital mortality rate was 40.7%, the dead subjects were older (p value= 0.012), has higher mean s. Na (p value=0.002), had higher Modified Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II score (p value=0.000), higher Multiple Organ Dysfunction score (p value=0.000), higher length of stay (p value= 0.167).Conclusion: Dysnatremia prevalence is high in geriatric elderly patients, hyponatremia is more frequent than hypernatremia, dysnatremia in Intensive Care Unit patients is more than ward patients, in hospital mortality among geriatric patients with dysnatremia is related to severity and nature of underling diseases as well as severity of dysnatremia itself.