Dehydration

This page is for adult patients. For pediatric patients, see: dehydration (peds)

Background

  • Decreased total body water resulting in relative hypertonicity and hypernatremia
  • Usually resulting from inadequate fluid intake or increased free water loss
  • Often confused with hypovolemia in which total body water is lost with a relative hypotonic or isotonic state

Clinical Features

Differential Diagnosis

Evaluation

  • Urine sodium concentration
  • FENa (fractional excretion of sodium)
  • Urine osmolality
  • Urinalysis

Management

Disposition

See Also

External Links

References