title: A Fatal Adverse Effect of Barbiturate Coma Therapy: Dyskalemia.
abstract: The management guideline for traumatic brain injury (TBI) recommends high-dose barbiturate therapy to control increased intracranial pressure refractory to other therapeutic options. High-dose barbiturate therapy, however, may cause many severe side effects; the commonly recognized ones include hypotension, immunosuppression, hepatic dysfunction, renal dysfunction, and prolonged decrease of cortical activity. Meanwhile, dyskalemia remains relatively uncommon. In this study, we report the case of a hypokalemic patient with severe rebound hyperkalemia, which occurred as a result of barbiturate coma therapy administered for TBI treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Cheju Halla Hospital, Jeju, Korea.
authors.forename: Hyun Mook
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Cheju Halla Hospital, Jeju, Korea.
authors.forename: Jin Wook
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Baek
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Cheju Halla Hospital, Jeju, Korea.
authors.forename: Sang Pyung
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Cheju Halla Hospital, Jeju, Korea.
authors.forename: Jae Ik
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Cho
keywords: Barbiturate; Brain injuries; Hyperkalemia; Hypokalemia