title: Actual Therapeutic Indication of an Old Drug: Urea for Treatment of Severely Symptomatic and Mild Chronic Hyponatremia Related to SIADH.
abstract: Oral urea has been used in the past to treat various diseases like gastric ulcers, liver metastases, sickle cell disease, heart failure, brain oedema, glaucoma, Meniere disease, etc. We have demonstrated for years, the efficacy of urea to treat euvolemic (SIADH) or hypervolemic hyponatremia. We briefly describe the indications of urea use in symptomatic and paucisymptomatic hyponatremic patients. Urea is a non-toxic, cheap product, and protects against osmotic demyelinating syndrome (ODS) in experimental studies. Prospective studies showing the benefit to treat mild chronic hyponatremia due to SIADH and comparing water restriction, urea, high ceiling diuretics, and antivasopressin antagonist antagonist should be done.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine, Erasmus University Hospital, Route de Lennik, 808, Brussels B-1070, Belgium. guy.decaux@skynet.be.
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Decaux
authors.affiliation: Departments of Nephrology, Erasmus University Hospital, Brussels B-1070, Belgium. fabrice.gankam@erasme.ulb.ac.be.
authors.forename: Fabrice
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gankam Kengne
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine, Erasmus University Hospital, Route de Lennik, 808, Brussels B-1070, Belgium. bruno.couturier@erasme.ulb.ac.be.
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Couturier
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine, Erasmus University Hospital, Route de Lennik, 808, Brussels B-1070, Belgium. frederic.vandergheynst@erasme.ulb.ac.be.
authors.forename: Frédéric
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vandergheynst
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Bracops Hospital, Brussels B-1070, Belgium. wim.musch@numericable.be.
authors.forename: Wim
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Musch
authors.affiliation: Departments of Internal Medicine, Erasmus University Hospital, Route de Lennik, 808, Brussels B-1070, Belgium. alain.soupart@entitejolimontoise.be.|Department of Internal Medicine, Jolimont/Tubize Hospital, Tubize 1480, Belgium. alain.soupart@entitejolimontoise.be.
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Soupart
keywords: ODS; SIADH; V2 antagonist; high ceiling diuretics; hyponatremia; urea