A STUDY OF HYPOMAGNESEMIA IN PATIENTS ADMITTED IN MEDICAL ICU AND ITS CORRELATION WITH FINAL OUTCOME

Introduction: Magnesium is second most common intracellular cation found in the human body that is required as cofactor in numerous enzymatic reactions, important for smooth functioning of cardiac and neurological systems. Magnesium deficiency is a condition that is often overlooked in critically ill patients. Magnesium deficiency is linked with risk of electrolyte imbalance, difficulty to wean off ventilator, sudden cardiac death and ultimately poorer outcome of critically ills patients. Objective: To assess prevalence of magnesium deficiency in critically ill patients admitted to Medical ICU and its association with requirement & duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU stay, APACHE-II & mortality. Methods: This Prospective descriptive study was conducted on 69 critically ill patients admitted in medical ICU of Department of Medicine in Tertiary health care center of South Gujarat. Pretested proforma was used to collect data after taking informed consent. Serum magnesium level of admitted patients were collected and entered in spreadsheet and Final analysis has been done with the help of Open EPI and SPSS software. Results: It was concluded that patients having hypomagnesemia were at increased risk of electrolyte abnormalities, longer ventilatory support, longer hospital and ultimately poorer outcome stay as compared to patients who had normal magnesium levels. Conclusion: Magnesium remain an important but often side-lined cation in the critically ill patient. However, Hypomagnesemia is a repeated finding seen in critically ill patients and is significantly associated with a higher mortality rate and more frequent need for mechanical ventilation.