Help! What to teach re: diarrhea and constipation while taking diuretics

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Hello all,

I am studying for a pharmacology test on monday and i came across a question that ask what to teach about diarrhea and constipation while on diuretics, i can't find anything specific in my textbook, i assume that we would have the patient notify us of these because they can imply that there is something wrong with the fluid levels, but again i can't find anything, can someone please shine some light on this for me. thanks

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Specializes in mis-information :p.

Both would get worse since both have a decrease in fluid & diuretics would further excrete more fluids.

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Specializes in critical care, PACU.

additionally, some diuretics cause hypokalemia while others cause sodium wasting. both of these can be exacerbated by vomiting/diarrhea (gross electrolyte wasting). In addition to dehydration, electrolyte imbalances can be very dangerous and need to be intervened. Further diarrhea = exhaustion of GI bases = metabolic acidosis and vomiting = exhaustion of acids = metabolic alkalosis. So all in all, medical intervention is warranted.

oops I see it was constipation instead of vomiting.

well constipation can cause bm to stick around longer = more absorption of electrolytes and water. we had a tricky question about constipation and electrolyte levels but I forget what it was. constipation definitely reflects dehydration like others posted.

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