Hyperkalaemia suxamethonium

Horton WA, Fergusson NV. Hyperkalaemia and cardiac arrest after the use of suxamethonium in intensive care. Anaesthesia 1988 43(10) 890-1. 

Hemming AE, Charlton S, Kelly P. Hyperkalaemia, cardiac arrest, suxamethonium and intensive care. Anaesthesia 1990 45(11) 990-1. 

Kohlschutter B, Baur H, Roth F. Suxamethonium-induced hyperkalaemia in patients with severe intra-abdominal infections. Br J Anaesth 1976 48(6) 557-62. 

Yentis SM. Suxamethonium and hyperkalaemia. Anaesth Intensive Care 1990 18(1) 92-101. 

It would seem from the study quoted above that patients taking chronic calcium-channel blocker treatment are at no greater risk of hyperkalaemia with suxamethonium than other patients. 

Disease A 38-year-old woman with multiple sclerosis developed life-threatening hyperkalaemia after the administration of suxamethonium diuing rapid sequence intubation [4 ]. 

It is established that suxamethonium may liberate potassium from skeletal muscles. An excessive rise in extracellular potassium levels which may lead to cardiac arrest will frequently occur in patients with traumatic or bum injuries of muscle, in neuropathies, myopathies and in patients with renal insufficiency (SED VIII, p. 281), In a clinical study Kohlschutter et al. (9 ) found that patients with severe and prolonged intraabdominal infections represent an additional group of individuals susceptible to suxa-methonium-induced hyperkalaemia. 

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