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What is hyperkalemia?

Hyperkalemia is typically defined as serum K⁺ levels >5.0 mEq/L.^1,2

While mild hyperkalemia is usually asymptomatic, high levels of K⁺ in the blood may cause life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, muscle weakness or paralysis.³

What causes hyperkalemia?

Hyperkalemia is caused by a complex interplay of physiological and environmental factors.^4,5

The kidneys are responsible for 90% of K⁺ excretion. The most common underlying cause of hyperkalemia is reduced or impaired renal excretion of K⁺, leading to a build-up of extracellular K⁺ levels⁶

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Hyperkalemia is associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality across patient populations⁷

Elevated serum K⁺ is associated with an increase in all-cause mortality in at-risk populations⁷

Hyperkalemia is one of the most clinically important electrolyte abnormalities and is a serious medical condition associated with increased mortality and high rates of hospitalisation.^3,4,7,8

Medical records of 911,698 patients with and without HF, CKD and DM were assessed to determine the relationship between K⁺ and all-cause mortality across an 18-month period.⁷

Risk of all-cause mortality was significantly higher following every 0.1 mEq/L change in potassium <4.0 mEq/L and >5.0 mEq/L⁷
In patients with CKD, HF and DM, the risk of all-cause mortality was significantly higher compared to controls⁷

In patients with CKD, hyperkalemia is associated with a higher risk of mortality across all CKD stages¹⁰

Patients with CKD are significantly more likely to develop hyperkalemia compared to those without.⁹ To determine the relationship between the risk of all-cause mortality and serum K⁺ levels across all CKD stages, a large-scale meta-analysis was conducted in over 1.2 million patients.¹⁰

27 international cohorts from the CKD Prognosis Consortium
1,217,986 patients followed-up for a mean 6.9 years

Hyperkalemia was associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality across all CKD stages.¹⁰

In patients with HF, hyperkalemia is an independent predictor of mortality¹¹

In a study evaluating the 16,116 serum K⁺ measurements taken from 2,164 patients with HF, a U-shaped association between serum K⁺ values and mortality was observed¹¹
Analysis of serum K⁺ dynamics revealed that persistence of abnormal K⁺ levels was linked to a higher risk of mortality in comparison with patients who maintained or returned to normal values¹¹