Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome

Ogilvie’s syndrome (OS) is a functional obstruction of the bowel due to an autonomic imbalance. It often presents with diarrhea and is associated with hypokalemia. We present a case of a 70-year-old male who developed severe abdominal distension, watery diarrhea, and persistent hypokalemia status af...

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Main Authors: Pradhum Ram, Abhinav Goyal, Marvin Lu, Joshua Sloan, William McElhaugh
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2016-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Gastrointestinal Medicine
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/1207240
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author Pradhum Ram
Abhinav Goyal
Marvin Lu
Joshua Sloan
William McElhaugh
author_facet Pradhum Ram
Abhinav Goyal
Marvin Lu
Joshua Sloan
William McElhaugh
author_sort Pradhum Ram
collection DOAJ
description Ogilvie’s syndrome (OS) is a functional obstruction of the bowel due to an autonomic imbalance. It often presents with diarrhea and is associated with hypokalemia. We present a case of a 70-year-old male who developed severe abdominal distension, watery diarrhea, and persistent hypokalemia status after left hip arthroplasty after suffering from a femoral neck fracture due to a fall and was diagnosed with OS. The persistent hypokalemia was slow to improve despite aggressive repletion because of the high potassium losses in the stool. This is most likely mediated through the increased expression of BK channels in the colonic mucosa. Aldosterone is theorized to have a role in the regulation of BK channels. Spironolactone was subsequently given and resulted in marked improvement of the diarrhea and hypokalemia. Thus, this case suggests a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of Ogilvie’s syndrome-associated diarrhea and hypokalemia.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2090-6528
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language English
publishDate 2016-01-01
publisher Wiley
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series Case Reports in Gastrointestinal Medicine
spelling doaj-art-5dc4d876d33d4c8b8df9d253c9228daf2025-08-20T03:34:44ZengWileyCase Reports in Gastrointestinal Medicine2090-65282090-65362016-01-01201610.1155/2016/12072401207240Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s SyndromePradhum Ram0Abhinav Goyal1Marvin Lu2Joshua Sloan3William McElhaugh4Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USAEinstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USAEinstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USAEinstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USAEinstein Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, USAOgilvie’s syndrome (OS) is a functional obstruction of the bowel due to an autonomic imbalance. It often presents with diarrhea and is associated with hypokalemia. We present a case of a 70-year-old male who developed severe abdominal distension, watery diarrhea, and persistent hypokalemia status after left hip arthroplasty after suffering from a femoral neck fracture due to a fall and was diagnosed with OS. The persistent hypokalemia was slow to improve despite aggressive repletion because of the high potassium losses in the stool. This is most likely mediated through the increased expression of BK channels in the colonic mucosa. Aldosterone is theorized to have a role in the regulation of BK channels. Spironolactone was subsequently given and resulted in marked improvement of the diarrhea and hypokalemia. Thus, this case suggests a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of Ogilvie’s syndrome-associated diarrhea and hypokalemia.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/1207240
spellingShingle Pradhum Ram
Abhinav Goyal
Marvin Lu
Joshua Sloan
William McElhaugh
Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome
Case Reports in Gastrointestinal Medicine
title Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome
title_full Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome
title_fullStr Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome
title_full_unstemmed Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome
title_short Use of Aldosterone Antagonist to Treat Diarrhea and Hypokalemia of Ogilvie’s Syndrome
title_sort use of aldosterone antagonist to treat diarrhea and hypokalemia of ogilvie s syndrome
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2016/1207240
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