Fluid and electrolyte management in the neurologically-impaired patient.
Maintaining a homeostatic fluid state in patients with neurological disease is a common challenge that nurses encounter when caring for the critically ill patient. The human body regulates fluid and chemical balances within precise ranges. Control mechanisms are found in both the neural and the renal systems. Disturbances within these systems are common in the neurologically-impaired patient because maintenance of homeostasis ultimately rests within the injured brain itself. Virtually any intracranial pathology can affect this precise feedback mechanism which regulates fluid volume. In addition, medications commonly administered cause profound fluid and electrolyte shifts. Proper management of all of these imbalances requires a thorough understanding of how the body maintains homeostasis, the factors that can disturb it and the various treatment modalities for each entity.
Parobek
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V
Neuro Intensive Care Unit, Mount Carmel Medical Center, Columbus, Ohio 43222, USA.
Alaimo
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I
D016638:Critical Illness; D006706:Homeostasis; D006801:Humans; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000150:complications*; D014883:Water-Electrolyte Imbalance / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000451:nursing / Q000503:physiopathology