Is low blood potassium harmful?

Low blood potassium is a common disease that can cause harm to the body to a certain extent. First of all, from the perspective of the digestive system, patients will experience nausea, constipation, abdominal distension, etc.; from the perspective of the cardiovascular system, the most common is arrhythmia; from the perspective of the neuromuscular system, patients will experience muscle weakness and flaccid paralysis in the limbs; from the perspective of the urinary system, frequent urination at night will occur; at the same time, it will also cause a disorder of acid-base balance.

1. Digestive system

Hypokalemia can cause weakened intestinal motility. Mild cases may cause loss of appetite, nausea, and constipation. Severe hypokalemia may cause abdominal distension and paralytic ileus.

2. Cardiovascular system

When blood potassium is low, myocardial excitability generally increases, and palpitations and arrhythmias may occur. In severe cases, atrioventricular block, ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation may occur, and finally the heart stops beating in a contraction state. In addition, it can also cause decreased myocardial tension, heart enlargement, peripheral vascular dilation, and decreased blood pressure.

3. Neuromuscular system

It manifests as decreased nerve and muscle irritability, weakness of the limb muscles, flaccid paralysis, slow or absent tendon reflexes and other kidney disease symptoms. In severe cases, breathing difficulties and even coma may occur.

4. Urinary system

Long-term hypokalemia can cause potassium-deficient nephropathy and renal dysfunction, decreased renal concentrating function, polyuria with low specific gravity, especially increased nocturia. This may be due to damage to distal tubular cells, reduced response to antidiuretic hormone, and reduced water reabsorption capacity. In addition, potassium deficiency will cause the bladder smooth muscle tension to decrease, urinary retention may occur, and patients are often prone to pyelonephritis.

5. Acid-base balance disorder

Hypokalemia can lead to metabolic alkali poisoning.

Warm reminder: Patients should pay attention to the above-mentioned harmful manifestations. Be sure to seek treatment as soon as possible to avoid causing serious harm. People should pay attention to check at ordinary times. If they find that they are lacking in certain vitamins, they should supplement them in time to avoid affecting their health. Reasonable treatment for patients is beneficial to their condition.