Electrolyte balance in dengue viral infection: Exploring the “hidden reef”
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61529/idjp.v34i4.474Abstract
Background: Dengue fever is a common acute febrile illness worldwide, caused by the dengue virus and transmitted mainly by the female Aedes aegypti mosquito. This study aims to determine the Association between serum electrolyte abnormalities and disease severity in dengue virus infection.
Material and Methods: This comparative cross-sectional study was conducted at the Pathology Department, Combined Military Hospital Malir, Karachi, from July to December 2022. It included 519 hospitalized patients with confirmed dengue infection; patients with other febrile illnesses were excluded. Cases were classified as severe or non-severe dengue fever. Hyponatremia and hypokalemia were defined as serum sodium <135 mEq/L and potassium <3.5 mEq/L, respectively. Data were analyzed using SPSS v25, with p ≤ 0.05 considered significant.
Results: Of 519 dengue patients, 28.3% (n = 147) had severe dengue fever. Hyponatremia was common (46.8%) and significantly more frequent in severe cases (56.5%; p < 0.001), while hypokalemia occurred in 19.3% and was also associated with severity (p < 0.001). Median serum sodium was significantly lower in severe disease (129 vs. 137 mEq/L; p < 0.001), whereas potassium showed no significant difference (p = 0.077). Severe dengue was significantly associated with male sex and older age (p < 0.001).
Conclusion: Hyponatremia, mostly mild, was the most common electrolyte disturbance and showed a strong association with dengue severity. Potassium abnormalities were common but did not differ significantly across severity groups. Age and gender were also significantly associated with disease severity.
Keywords: Dengue viral infection, Electrolyte balance, Exploring, Hidden reef
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