BackgroundMagnesium (Mg) is essential for life and plays a crucial role in several biochemical and physiological processes in the human body. Hypomagnesemia is common in all hospitalized patients, especially in critically ill patients with coexisting electrolyte abnormalities. Hypomagnesemia may cause severe and potential fatal complications if not timely diagnosed and properly treated, and associate with increased mortality.Main bodyMg deficiency in critically ill patients is mainly caused by gastrointestinal and/or renal disorders and may lead to secondary hypokalemia and hypocalcemia, and severe neuromuscular and cardiovascular clinical manifestations. Because of the physical distribution of Mg, there are no readily or easy methods to assess Mg status. However, serum Mg and the Mg tolerance test are most widely used. There are limited studies to guide intermittent therapy of Mg deficiency in critically ill patients, but some empirical guidelines exist. Further clinical trials and critical evaluation of empiric Mg replacement strategies is needed.ConclusionPatients at risk of Mg deficiency, with typical biochemical findings or clinical symptoms of hypomagnesemia, should be considered for treatment even with serum Mg within the normal range.
Hypomagnesemia can be caused by a wide range of diseases (e.g. gastrointestinal disorders, kidney diseases or endocrine disorders), but it can also be a side effect of several drugs. It can be asymptomatic or cause many different clinical symptoms, and the clinical manifestations mainly depend on the rate of development rather than the actual serum magnesium concentration. We here present a 40-year-old female patient with Torsade de pointes ventricular tachycardia and cardiac arrest caused by severe hypomagnesemia as an adverse effect of the proton pump inhibitor omeprazole.
Key Clinical MessageThe diagnosis of Lyme neuroborreliosis should be considered whenever a patient presents with neurological symptoms and comes from an endemic area. However, atypical clinical presentation occurs including gastrointestinal manifestations because of autonomous dysfunction.
Tularemia is a zoonosis caused by the gram-negative coccobacillus Francisella tularensis. The bacterium can be transmitted in several ways including direct contact with animal reservoirs, ingestion, inhalation and bites, and typical clinical symptoms are headache, fever, diarrhea and dyspnea. Francisella tularensis has two predominant subspecies (ssp), namely ssp. tularensis and ssp. holarctica. Ssp. holarctica is less virulent and does usually not cause fatal disease. We here present a 51-year-old male with sepsis and multi-organ failure caused by F. tularensis ssp. holarctica infection suggesting that atypical agents including F. tularensis should be considered in patients presenting symptoms of infections without response to standard treatments.
1336Tidsskr Nor Legeforen nr. 16, 2016; 136 Kommentar og debatt Magnesiummangel og protonpumpehemmere 1336 En rekke sykdomstilstander kan gi magnesiummangel. Den kliniske presentasjonen kan vaere svaert ulik og avhenger av tidsforløpet så vel som eksakt serumverdi av magnesium. Magnesiummangel kan også vaere en bivirkning av medikamentgruppen protonpumpehemmere. Man bør ha lav terskel for å undersøke elektrolyttstatus i oppfølging og utredning av pasienter som bruker slike medikamenter.
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