what potassium level is high?

[texasstyle]

Hello everyone. I am wondering how high some of your potassium levels have gotten. My husbands are apprently running high 6.? I think, and they want him start 3x a week. They told him if he doesn't come in Wed. to take the bottle of potassuim binder. I wonder how high could it get and at what stage is it considered critical. What do they do when it's get that high. Thanks.



Edited: Fixed error in subject line - okarol/admin

[sullidog]

Mine is at 4.8 which is in the normal range. I've never heard of a potassium binder.
If too hi the hart could stop without warning, so he needs to deffinatly go to d 3 x a week.
Troy

[RichardMEL]

Yes, over 6 is bad. The normal range is around 3.2-5.5ish. My unit gets concerned when we go over 5.2. I'm currently 4.9 which is OK. Highest I have been has been 5.2. Definitely over 6 is action stations in my view. I remember hearing in my unit a while ago someone was brought in for emergency dialysis - they were I think 6.7. Definitely K levels over 6 significantly increases the risk to the heart.

So yes TS - hubby needs to do his 3x/week D (as we've been saying for some time). Is he cheating on his diet with high K foods (tomato, pineapple, oranges etc?).. He needs to be ultra careful I think.

[chiefsfan301]

Prior to D mine was always around 5.9 but when it spiked over 6 I had to take a dose of Sodium Polystyr. My doctor told me that if it slowly goes up is not as bad as if it spikes up fast.

[texasstyle]

Of course now he's not following the diet. It amazes me. Geezz... I  always have concerns but the heart deal down right scares me. You get so used to living a certain way that sometimes it's like you're denial until crisis happens. Kinda like since you can't see what's happening inside the body everything looks ok from the outside.I already know I can't force him to anything but I can educate myself and that's what I'm doing. To be honest here, we'll see if goes on Wed. as been suggested and if not, takes that potassium binder. (it's the stuff we were given to take in case of emergency & couldn't get to dialysis. Snow etc...)  I was diagnosed a couple years back with a serious diagnoses and I did my homework right away on it. I can't understand why he's so cavalier about his. I have to think that if it were of top concern they would send him to the hosp. or something. I know from reading his labs it has been going up slowly, but the last 2 weeks were
in the "red  light" zone on the chart. You folks are always a great help to me.

[Rerun]

At dialysis they have 3 different potassium baths.  K3, K2, K1 are the baths.  K3 pulls out a minimum of potassium so someone with low potassium levels would be put on this bath so they would not be stripped of too much potassium.  K2 takes out more potassium.  That is what I'm on and my numbers always push 5.5.  I would like to be on a K1 bath.  K1 bath takes out even more potassium but they don't like using it because it could make your potassium too low.  I still would like it so I could have a glass of milk once in awhile.

So, what potassium bath is he on?     

[MooseMom]

Potassium baths?  OMG, I've never heard of that!  As much as I love IHD, I have to say that there have been many times that I've read a post and have learned something new, complicated and scary.  Do you have different potassium baths when you do home hemo (like NxStage)?  I don't think I'm clever enough to go on dialysis; it's just too complicated for my little toxin-filled brain.

[Wallyz]

NxStage only has a 1K bath.  I was told to drink OJ in the morning to keep my potassium from being too low during the day.

[Rerun]

Not like you take a bath???   

The bath surrounds the fibers which are hollow cellophane tubes which the blood goes through and the potassium solution bathes the fibers and has a low potassium amount so osmoses naturally pulls the high potassium from the blood to the lower potassium bath to equal out.  Does that make any sense?

PM me if you have questions.   

[Rerun]

NxStage only has a 1K bath.  I was told to drink OJ in the morning to keep my potassium from being too low during the day.

            

[MooseMom]

Not like you take a bath???   

The bath surrounds the fibers which are hollow cellophane tubes which the blood goes through and the potassium solution bathes the fibers and has a low potassium amount so osmoses naturally pulls the high potassium from the blood to the lower potassium bath to equal out.  Does that make any sense?

PM me if you have questions.   

Actually, yes, that makes sense.  And I don't remember the last time I had a glass of orange juice.  It has literally been years.

[texasstyle]

Amazing how much you can learn here. I'm assuming he's on the higgest bath because he once told me that he's on the highest settings the machine will go. Unit called this morning and he said he'll "pass" about coming in tomoroow. I asked if he'll take that bottle of emergency potassuim binder tomorrow like he was told if doesn't come in and he said "he'll think about it."  i appreciate this place becuse it helps give me strength. I know I can't make him do anything.

[monrein]

If a person's potassium goes too high the heart could just stop and the result is sudden death.  This happened to a fellow patient of mine many years ago, in the parking lot on his way in for his session.

[Rerun]

You usually have other symptoms first such as lethargy of the legs and then no movement of the legs and then total paralasis.  Look for these signs and then take him to ER for emergency dialysis.

[Sunny]

Paralysis of the legs?

[monrein]

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/766479-overview

"Hyperkalemia is a potentially life-threatening illness that can be difficult to diagnose because of a paucity of distinctive signs and symptoms. The physician must be quick to consider hyperkalemia in patients who are at risk for this disease process. Because hyperkalemia can lead to sudden death from cardiac arrhythmias, any suggestion of hyperkalemia requires an immediate ECG to ascertain whether electrocardiographic signs of electrolyte imbalance are present.

The mortality rate can be as high as 67% if severe hyperkalemia is not treated rapidly. An ECG is essential to assess for cardiac conduction disturbances related to hyperkalemia.

The kidneys normally excrete excess potassium from the body. Therefore, most cases of hyperkalemia are caused by disorders that reduce the kidneys' ability to excrete potassium."



The symptoms can include paralysis and muscle weakness but very often the symptoms are vague....and the death rate resulting from high potassium is pretty scary.
The guy I knew was walking when he dropped dead.
You CANNOT rely on symptoms as a warning.

[kellyt]

Potassium is used in the "lethal injection", so, yes, it will stop your heart no doubt.  My highest level read was in the 7's, but after a lab redo we believe it was a bad draw.  So my highest "true" potassium level was 5.4 or 5.7.

[MooseMom]

I get my labs done every 3 months.  One day last year, I was coming in from a 3 mile walk, feelin' fine and virtuous, and the phone was ringing.  It was my neph's nurse who told me that they had received my results and that my potassium had suddenly spiked to 6 point something or another.  Since my other numbers were OK (well, OK for CKD4), they called in a prescription for sodium bicarb, and I had to have repeat labwork done in 3 days.  It worked; my K level went down to normal, but it just goes to show that you can be completely asymptomatic.  I had been following my renal diet, but that wasn't enough.  I now take the max dosage of 8 sodium bicarb tablets a day, and even now my potassium still runs the high side of normal.  Scary stuff.

[Mizar]

My Husband, does D, Three Times a Week. He gets a Monthly, " Report Card ." The Potassium Scores, go from 3.0 on the Left Side of the Paper, to 7.5 on the Right Side. He came Home with a Paper, once, that showed, His Potassium Score, as being at the very edge, of the Right Side of the Paper. They told, Him, He was heading for a Heart Attack, if He did not watch His Diet, Pronto. He did and now His Scores are Normal. Scary stuff. Nothing to fool around with.

[-Lady Noir-]

Mikes potassium before he was on D averaged at around 5.8, the highest it's been was 7.2. He was hospitalised, and they had him on a drip which didn't lower it, they injected him with this stuff which was supposed to lower his heart rate, but it did the exact opposite. Took a few days to lower the potassium, he had to drink this awful caramel coloured stuff which was like chalk, which actually used to make him throw up.. so that itself lowers your potassium 

Even with careful diet at the time, did nothing for his potassium. It was dialysis that lowered it to the normal rate

[texasstyle]

 Thanks for all the information and yes, it is scary stuff!  I am going to pray we by this somehow. He makes me so angry. I can't even imagine....

[tyefly]

Nxstage has different Potassium soln...  when using bags there is only one I think availible...but with the pureflow they have two..... 001 sac or the 004 sac.....  the 001 sac takes more K out ..... I use this one so I can eat more fruit....  my labs are great...

[Quickfeet]

I think at 9 you are pretty much guaranteed to be dead. Between 7 and 8 you have the risk of death as well as permanent damage to your heart. 6 long term, can damage your heart.

[RichardMEL]

Amazing how much you can learn here. I'm assuming he's on the higgest bath because he once told me that he's on the highest settings the machine will go. Unit called this morning and he said he'll "pass" about coming in tomoroow. I asked if he'll take that bottle of emergency potassuim binder tomorrow like he was told if doesn't come in and he said "he'll think about it."  i appreciate this place becuse it helps give me strength. I know I can't make him do anything.

I'm sorry I want to rant and scream rude words and throw things - YOU FLIPPIN IDIOT!!!!! 

Not you TS hun.. you know I mean hubby. How can he so disinterested in his OWN wellfare, let alone the effect on you and others who care about him??? I'm absolutely shocked!!!!

YES.. I understand he doesn't want to dialysis.. and definitely doesn't want to do 3x/week. Iget that. Heck *I* don't want to do it, but I'd rather do it and/or take meds than have a heart attack, or just drop dead, or other serious complications.

*shakes head in sadness at such a person*

 

That's what he bloody well deserves in my view!!!!! ARGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[texasstyle]

I have to agree.