59
Views
11
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Original Articles

Exercise-Associated Hyponatremia

, MD
Pages 55-61 | Published online: 19 Jun 2015
 

Abstract

Disorders of serum sodium concentration occur commonly in athletes participating in endurance sports. While hypernatremia is the most commonly seen disorder, hyponatremia can occur in 2% to 7% of participants. Hyponatremia is due to a combination of excessive water or hypotonic fluid intake as well as high levels of arginine vasopressin (or antidiuretic hormone), which limits the ability of the kidney to excrete water. Most of these cases are associated with either no or minimal side effects and do not require specific therapy other than close monitoring and fluid restriction. However, a small number of athletes may present with severe and life-threatening hyponatremia associated with cerebral edema and possibly noncardiogenic pulmonary edema. Rapid diagnosis and appropriate therapy of these symptomatic athletes with hypertonic saline is required to prevent severe complications or death. The ability to have rapid on-site measurement of serum sodium concentration greatly facilitates accurate diagnosis and therapy. Prevention is based on widespread education regarding the risks of overhydration and judicious intake of fluids during endurance events.

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.