Delayed hypokalemic paralysis following a convulsion due to alcohol abstinence.
We encountered three patients with hypokalemic paralysis following a convulsion in the early stages of alcohol abstinence. The transtubular potassium gradient was less than 2.0, suggesting intracellular potassium shift. Hypokalaemic paralysis may result from retention of intracellular cationic potassium bound by anionic phosphorylated compounds, precipitated by an acceleration of the (Na+)-(K+) pump in alcohol withdrawal and convulsions. These findings warn of the lethal hypokalemia that may occur after convulsions, particularly soon after alcohol abstinence associated with moderate withdrawal symptoms.
Chen
Wei-Hsi
WH
Department of Neurology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, 100 Tai Pei Road, Niao Sung Hsiang, Kaohsiung 833, Taiwan.
Yin
Hsin-Ling
HL
Lin
Hung-Sheng
HS
Chen
Shun-Sheng
SS
Liu
Jia-Shou
JS