Hyperpotassemia vs hyperkalemia?

Published

I was transporting a nursing home resident when I looked on the chart and it said she had a hx of hyperpotassemia. Huh? I have always learned it as hyperkalemia. Have they changed it or is this more dumbing down of the medical language?

Up Vote Up Vote ×

uh....never heard of it.

maybe it was a dumb nurse who couldn't remember the terminology?

"i know it's hyper something....sounds good to me!"

of course, i could be wrong.....

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I think this diagnosis was written by an "older" doc.

Certainly wouldn't sweat the small stuff. Anything over 5.5 starts ME sweating.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

I just searched hyperpotassemia and it actually comes up in medical articles! Oh my! Why? Because I thought this language had been around for MANY years! That just burns my onion!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Med Surg - Renal.
I was transporting a nursing home resident when I looked on the chart and it said she had a hx of hyperpotassemia. Huh? I have always learned it as hyperkalemia. Have they changed it or is this more dumbing down of the medical language?

I remember soon after I started my first CNA job at a nursing home - I hadn't yet taken any nursing school prerequisites. We had a middle aged lady who was almost completely paralyzed and no one could figure out why. I looked and her diagnosis was "hyponatremia."

No one working the floor had any idea what it was.

Yes, it was a scary place to work, but I sure learned a lot there.

The patient in question improved very slowly, moving from total assist to walking out of the place with a walker in a couple months.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ER, ICU.

Must be caused by hypoknowlegemia.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Must be caused by hypoknowlegemia.

Ha! That's great!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in retired LTC.
Must be caused by hypoknowlegemia.
Not to be confused with pseudointellegenceosis! :specs:
Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.

Like everything else every one wants to coin their own phrase and make it new.

Whether it is Heart attack, AMI (acute mypcardial infarction) or Non-STEMI or STEMI (ST elevation myocardial infarction). Once it was PVD (peripheral vascular dissease) is now PAD (peripheral arterial disease).

Potato, Potatoe. Tomato, tomatoe. :bugeyes:

Up Vote Up Vote ×

when i went from east coast to california nobody knew what i meant when i said, "dmi." they were all "imis" there. i started joking with my patients that you would have either and ekg or and ecg depending on whether your physician went to stanford or harvard. then i moved back and had to learn all over again.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Emergency Nursing.

It's just a replacement of the Latin kalium with the English potassium.

Is it soda or is it pop?

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in ER.
It's just a replacement of the Latin kalium with the English potassium.

Is it soda or is it pop?

It's actually Coke. In the south, everything is Coke. "I'm going to the Coke machine, what kind of Coke do you want? (i.e Sprite, Diet Coke, etc.). No soda, no pop...only Coke :)

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion