Boletín de la Asociación Médica de Puerto Rico
-
Hospitals use a triage system in which health care staff sort's patients into groups. During the long waiting periods after triage, inadvertence of patient's clinical deterioration may occur. ⋯ Blood pressure monitoring every 30 minutes significantly improved ED waiting patients' clinical outcome and shortened their hospital stay. Observations of oxygen saturation, temperature, pulse, and respiratory rate were not significantly useful.
-
We report a case series of patients that develop severe life threatening hyperkalemia after use of a commonly prescribe oral antibiotic, Trimethoprim-Sulfamethoxazole. The three patients required acute hemodialysis to normalize serum potassium levels after development of hypotension and heart block due to hyperkalemia. ⋯ Patients with chronic kidney disease, particularly those receiving other medications that may also contribute to the development of hyperkalemia, should be closely monitored for this complication when Trimethoprim-containing antibiotic is needed. In these cases, other antibiotic therapy alternatives should be considered.