Annals of Clinical Biochemistry > Volume 45, Number 2 > Pp. 221-225

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Case Report

Hypokalaemic paralysis precipitated by distal renal tubular acidosis secondary to Sjögren's syndrome

D M Comer ¹ , A G Droogan ², I S Young ³ and A P Maxwell ⁴

¹ Senior House Officer, General Medicine, Craigavon Area Hospital Group Trust, Craigavon BT63 5QQ, Northern Ireland; ² Consultant Neurologist; ³ Consultant Chemical Pathologist, Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast BT12 6BA, Northern Ireland; ⁴ Consultant Nephrologist, Belfast City Hospital, Belfast BT9 7AB, Northern Ireland

Corresponding author: Dr D M Comer. Email: dcomer{at}doctors.org.uk

A 43-year-old woman presented with a sudden onset of hypokalaemic paralysis requiring intubation and ventilatory support. Subsequent biochemical and clinical assessments established a diagnosis of distal renal tubular acidosis (RTA) in association with underlying Sjögren's syndrome as the aetiology of her profound hypokalaemia. Distal RTA is rare, but Sjögren's syndrome is one of the more common causes in adults and should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients who present with hypokalaemic muscular paralysis.

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