Potassium Blood

What is a Potassium Blood Test?

A potassium blood test is a medical test used to determine the concentration of potassium in an individual’s blood. Measuring one’s potassium, an electrolyte, is crucial to assessing the function of one’s nerves and muscles. More specifically, it is a tool meant to evaluate an individual’s overall health and see if they have any underlying conditions such as kidney disease, heart disease, and high blood pressure.

The potassium blood test is often incorporated into a basic metabolic panel, a series of chemical tests that measure the levels of substances like potassium, sodium, carbon dioxide, creatinine, and calcium in an individual’s blood. The procedure is similar to a basic metabolic panel, wherein the practitioner in charge will take a blood sample and process it in the laboratory. The results obtained will be analyzed by the laboratory technician and interpreted by the referring physician.

The risks and side effects of the potassium blood test are similar to other standard blood tests wherein the practitioner in charge may have difficulties locating a vein to insert the needle. Aside from that, the patient may have bleeding, bruising, lightheadedness, and the potential for fainting or infection after the test.

How does it work?

Step One. Obtain a Copy of the Template

Secure a copy of either the digital or printable version of the potassium blood test to bring out when needed by doing either of the following:

• Clicking the “Use Template” or “Download Template” button
• Searching for “Potassium Blood” on Carepatron’s template library’s search bar on the app or website

Step Two. Create the Request

After your interview, assess or physically examine your patient; if you think that your patient will benefit from undergoing a potassium blood test, use our template to create a request form for the test. It’s also possible that you fill out the template to request for the procedure for a routine checkup.

Step Three. Submit the Form

Depending on the patient’s condition, they or the practitioner in charge will submit the request form to the laboratory technician so a blood sample may be collected from the patient.

Step Four. Write Down Interpretation

After the results come back, the referring physician may use the other half of the template as a document to write down their analysis, interpretation, observations, and findings to refer to during diagnosis or treatment approach formulation.

Step Five. Store the Template Securely

After you finish, store the completed template securely. We recommend that you use and keep digital copies in Careptron, a HIPAA-compliant software where you can store your electronic patient records.

When would you use this test?

A healthcare practitioner may request a potassium blood test for multiple clinical reasons in the following scenarios:

Routine Checkup

Since potassium is commonly included in a basic metabolic panel test, which can be requested for routine check-ups, one can safely say that a potassium blood test can also be requested for the same purpose. 

Identification and Diagnosis:

Should the practitioner suspect that a patient may have electrolyte imbalance, high blood pressure, heart-related conditions, kidney disease, metabolic acidosis, or alkalosis, the potassium blood test may be requested and used alongside other tests. In addition, if the patient experiences a paralysis attack or exhibits any other symptoms related to the conditions above, the practitioner may request a test to determine the underlying cause. 

Monitoring and Management

A practitioner who is caring for a patient who is diagnosed with any of the conditions mentioned above—heart disease, high blood pressure, kidney diseases, etc.—can request a potassium blood test to monitor the patient’s condition, especially after administering treatment to check its effectiveness and to manage the condition post medical care.

Aside from that, a patient may undergo a potassium blood test if they’re taking medication such as diuretics, antihypertensive drugs, etc., which can potentially impact one’s potassium levels to adjust medication dosage if necessary. 

What do the results mean?

Considering the reference range of a typical normal range of potassium levels being between 3.6 to 5.2 millimoles per liter (mmol/L), here’s a general guideline of what each result means:

• Normal Potassium Levels: If the patient’s potassium levels fall within the normal range, it means there’s a balance of the minerals in the body. 
• Low Potassium Levels: If the patient’s potassium levels fall below the lower limit of the normal range, they may have hypokalemia. Aside from these, they may experience irregular heartbeat, fatigue, muscle cramps, constipation, and low blood pressure. 
• High Potassium Levels: If the patient’s potassium levels exceed the upper limit of the normal range, they may have hyperkalemia which points to underlying issues like kidney disease or adrenal gland exhaustion. 

Do note that test results may vary depending on factors like the patient’s health conditions and the laboratory’s specific standards. Therefore, it’s essential to consider the patient’s context and results from other tests, if possible, during analysis and interpretation. 

Research & Evidence

There’s no doubt that the potassium blood test is effective and significant, especially for medical diagnostics. Here are notable findings and insights from one article and review, among many, that prove the importance of the potassium blood test:

• According to an article by Healthline, the potassium blood test has the diagnostic potential to identify underlying conditions related to one’s heart and kidney, and its value is further underscored by the fact that the test is included in a basic metabolic panel. 
• As mentioned in a critical review titled “Point-of-care and self-testing for potassium: recent tests,” potassium is an essential bodily electrolyte, and there are risks for having abnormal potassium levels. It’s so valuable that there have been advancements in point-of-care and self-testing technologies to measure potassium levels. 

Aside from these, given that the potassium blood test is being used by medical practitioners worldwide as one of the medical tools for diagnosis, there may be enough evidence of its value. However, it must still be acknowledged that factors such as clinical findings and other test results must be considered during diagnosis, monitoring, or management to get a complete picture of the patient’s condition and for accuracy’s sake.

References

• Hutter, T., Collings, T. S., Kostova, G., & Karet, F. E. (2022). Point-of-care and self-testing for potassium: recent advances. Sensors & Diagnostics, 1(4), 614–626. https://doi.org/10.1039/d2sd00062h
• Pietrangelo, A. (2023, June 20). Potassium blood test. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/potassium-test