Jahnavi Sarma
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Written By: Jahnavi Sarma | Published : February 26, 2021 12:51 PM IST
Nearly 32 per cent of COVID-19 patients with low sodium levels at admission needed a breathing tube and ventilator or oxygen through a face mask compared with only 17.5 percent of patients whose sodium values were normal.
There are many factors that may increase a person's risk of dying from COVID-19 just as there are so many factors that can lead to severe complications from this viral disease. Now, a new study from the University College London (UCL) Medical School in London, U.K, says that hospitalized patients with COVID-19 and abnormal sodium levels in the blood have an increased risk of experiencing respiratory failure or dying. The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism published this study. According to researchers, the findings of this study are likely to directly affect patient care.
Researchers say that sodium measurements can inform doctors about which COVID-19 patients are at high risk of deterioration and death. Sodium levels can guide decision making about whether a COVID-19 patient needs hospital admission or monitoring in the intensive care unit.
Sodium is routinely measured as part of bloodwork done for all patients coming to the hospital, and its measurement is inexpensive. Sodium is an essential mineral and helps regulate fluid volume in the body and blood pressure. The study was conducted in 488 adults with COVID-19 admitted to two London hospitals, UCL Hospital and Whittington Hospital, over an eight-week period last year. The 277 men and 211 women had a median age of 68 years. They had a median hospital stay of eight days.
According to researchers, it is the first time that a study has shown that patients presenting at the hospital with COVID-19 and low sodium are twice as likely to need intubation or other means of advanced breathing support as those with normal sodium. Additionally, they found that patients who develop high sodium levels during hospital stay were also three times more likely to die than those who have normal sodium levels throughout hospitalization.
Nearly 32 per cent of COVID-19 patients with low sodium levels at admission needed a breathing tube and ventilator or oxygen through a face mask compared with only 17.5 percent of patients whose sodium values were normal, the investigators reported. Unlike excess sodium in the blood, low sodium levels had no association with an increased risk of dying in the hospital.
Among patients with high sodium levels at any time during their hospital stay, nearly 56 percent died versus about 21 percent of patients whose sodium remained normal, the data showed.
Doctors usually treat high sodium levels with intravenous fluids, and low sodium may require intravenous fluids, fluid restriction or medications. However, both conditions are often underestimated and undertreated.
There are many reasons why patients may experience an imbalance in their sodium levels. Fluid losses due to diarrhea, vomiting, sweating, and not drinking enough water can lead to high sodium levels. Therefore, it is important to avoid dehydration during a hospital admission for COVID-19. High sodium, on the other hand, is usually diet related.
(With inputs from Agencies)
