TO ANALYZE THE IMPORTANCE OF ROUTINE ELECTROLYTES AND CORRECTING HYPONATREMIA IN SEVERE PROBLEMS OF COPD

Abstract

Background & Method: Study will be conducted on sixty patients of acute exacerbation of COPD from the Department of Respiratory Medicine (TB and Chest) at Sapthagiri Institute of Medical Sciences & Research Center, Bangalore. All the tests were done with due permission from the Institutional Ethical Committee and informed consent from the subjects or their legal relatives. Subjects were included on the basis of their diagnosis of COPD as per GOLD guidelines.

Result: The association between Hyponatremia and Severity of COPD based on BODE class. Among 18 patients with Mild COPD, 1,15,2, and 0 subjects had Normal Serum Sodium, Mild, Moderate and Profound Hyponatremia respectively. Among 23 patients with Moderate COPD, 2,0,21, and 0 subjects had Normal Serum Sodium, Mild, Moderate and Profound Hyponatremia respectively. Among 25 patients with Severe COPD, 3,22,37, and 4 subjects had Normal Serum Sodium, Mild, Moderate and Profound Hyponatremia respectively. P-value of 0.000 showed statistically significant. The association between Hyponatremia and Exacerbations in the Following 1 year. The study showed a linear relation between Severity of Hyponatremia and Exacerbations with a statistically significant P-value of 0.0007

Conclusion: Hyponatremia along with other electrolyte imbalances are very common during an episode of acute exacerbation of COPD. Routine screening for electrolyte imbalances and correction are very necessary as it reduces the quality of life, increases exacerbations following one year and even may cause mortality.

Keywords: electrolytes, hyponatremia, COPD & respiratory.