Potassium is an essential mineral that is vital for the proper function of all the cells and organs within your body. As an electrolyte, potassium plays an important role in the conduction of electricity throughout your body. High potassium levels are only dangerous when the potassium begins to leak into the bloodstream. The presence of excess levels of potassium in the bloodstream is called hyperkalemia and can lead to severe complications.
Symptoms of High Potassium
Usually small increases in potassium levels do not lead to any overt symptoms. Furthermore, your body is typically able to control potassium and any increases are transient. However, severe elevations in potassium can cause a variety of symptoms. If you are suffering from hyperkalemia, you may experience nausea and vomiting. High potassium levels can cause fatigue and muscle weakness. If you experience these symptoms or have a reason to believe your potassium levels are high, seek emergency care because hyperkalemia is a dangerous, possibly fatal disease.
Arrhythmia
Arrhythmia is a serious condition characterized by the presence of irregular heart beats. Potassium is vital in the proper contraction of the heart muscle. If potassium becomes elevated, then the muscles and nerves in the heart lose the ability to control the heartbeat. Thus, high potassium levels can lead to arrhythmias. The severity of an arrhythmia is directly related to the elevation in potassium. Severely elevated potassium levels can lead to fatal arrhythmias.
Cardiac Arrest
One potentially lethal complication of high potassium is cardiac arrest. Without a heartbeat, blood is unable to reach the cells of the body. Cardiac arrest quickly results in death. In order to prevent this dreaded complication, doctors must quickly reduce potassium levels and ensure that the heart is not under stress.
Paralysis
Potassium is essential in normal muscle contraction. High levels of potassium in the blood cause a malfunction of muscle tissue. In severe cases, this can lead to muscle weakness and partial paralysis. Typically, potassium is sequestered within muscle cells and very little is in the blood. As blood levels of potassium rise, the electrochemical balance within the muscle fiber is lost and this prevents the muscle from contracting properly. If this affects the diaphragm, the chief muscle of respiration, you may develop difficulty breathing and or lose the ability to breathe altogether.
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