What is this condition? How could the patient have gotten hyponatremia? What is happening at the cellular level?

Question

A patient is brought into an ER presenting with symptoms that mimic intoxication. The patient’s friend says they have not been drinking but are gearing up for a marathon the following weekend. After a series of tests the doctor diagnoses the patient with hyponatremia. What is this condition? How could the patient have gotten hyponatremia? What is happening at the cellular level?

Answer 1

Hyponatremia likely resulted from excess water intake while training for the marathon. Essentially, the solute concentration in his blood was diluted. At a cellular level, cells are beginning to swell. Think of osmosis: water follows a gradient from an area with a low solute concentration to an area of higher solute concentration, right? This can be very dangerous as the cells can burst. This is why patients are given saline and not just water... because the osmolarity of saline closely matches that of blood.  

 

Hope that helped! I am not sure what level class you are taking/how in depth you need your answer to be. 

Answer 2

Partial Answer:

Hyponatremia is the condition wherein the sodium concentration in the blood serum is below normal levels.