excreting potassium in the urine?

[sullidog]

While I was in the hospital with high potassium, I found this interesting. My potassium was 7 that's why I was admited, they drew it twice just to be sure, and then I urinated then they drew again. it was still high but dropped to 5.8! I'm guessing my kidneys must still be filtering a bit? My urine output is not as much as a normal person's but it's a lot. They never did a 24 hour urine clearence on me just to see how much function I have but I thought it was interesting that my potassium would drop after urinating. My theory on this is I must be excreting some wastes still in the urine but not a whole lot.

[Restorer]

Getting wastes out of your blood and into your urine is more of a constant thing. Urinating doesn't all of a sudden remove potassium from your blood, because it's already removed - it's just sitting in your bladder, and what's in your bladder doesn't count anymore.

You probably are still excreting potassium with the urine you do produce. It's also possible that some of that potassium shifted from your blood to your tissues.

[kellyt]

Or it could have just been a bad draw (the 7).  Once my nephrologist called me personall to see how I was feeling.  When I told him I was fine, he said that my potassium showed a reading of 8 (or something).  He had me immediately to get another stick and it was in the lower 5's.  He chalked up the higher reading to a bad draw.

Good Luck