Urinary electrolytes: uses and limitations

ABSTRACT

Disturbances of the volume and composition of body fluids are frequent manifestations of a wide variety of disease processes, and they often dominate the clinical picture. Some of the direct result of a primary disease originating in the kidney itself or involve it as a complication of diseases arising elsewhere, while others are inadvertent consequences of our therapeutic interventions. No matter what their origin, these changes represent formidable potential threats to our patient's health and demand careful and thoughtful correction. This article is designed to provide an outline for a rational use of urinary electrolyte estimation in assessment of some common water and electrolyte disorders, their limitations and more importantly the specific pre-requists for their interpretation: