Is Kayexalate Useful in the Treatment of Hyperkalemia in the Emergency Department?
Background: Hyperkalemia is the most common electrolyte disorder seen in the Emergency Department and treatment of hyperkalemia is core knowledge of EM training for interns and focuses on:
1) Stabilization of cardiac myocytes with calcium salts2) Temporary shifting of potassium into cells (insulin, beta agonists, normal saline,magnesium, sodium bicarbonate)3) Removal of potassium from the body (i.e. loop diuretics, cathartics)4) Definitive Treatment (i.e. Hemodyalisis)
Although there is still some debate on the first two areas (i.e. is there truly a role for sodium bicarbonate?) our focus will be on the removal part of the algorithm, specifically, is there a role for kayexalate?
Welcome to the January 2015 REBELCast, where Swami and I are going to tackle a very important scenario that comes up in the daily practice of not only Emergency Medicine, but also in Medicine. Today we are going to specifically tackle one topic:
Background: Streptococcal pharyngitis is a common presentation to primary care and Emergency Department physicians. Every year, 10 million patients in the United States are treated with antibiotics for pharyngitis. However, less than 10% of these patients actually have strep pharyngitis (
Welcome to the September REBELCast 2014, where Matt, Swami, and I are going to tackle a couple more scenarios to help your clinical practice. Today, we are going to specifically tackle two different topics:
