Hyponatremia and Central Pontine Myelinolysis

Hyponatremia: Statistics Updated:

Well, folks, I hate to say that I was right, but I was right. The number of hospitalizations due to hyponatremia increased in 2010. It is an ongoing epidemic, and one that needs to be addressed.

I’m am praying that if you read this post, you will do your part in spreading the word about hyponatremia. PLEASE, share my blog with your friends, family, neighbors, co-workers, ANYONE and EVERYONE that you know. It’s preventable, and it should be a household name.

The following information was obtained from, HCUPnet: http://hcupnet.ahrq.gov/HCUPnet.jsp

Weighted national estimates from HCUP Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), 2010, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), based on data collected by individual States and provided to AHRQ by the States. Total number of weighted discharges in the U.S. based on HCUP NIS = 39,008,298. Statistics based on estimates with a relative standard error (standard error / weighted estimate) greater than 0.30 or with standard error = 0 in the nationwide statistics (NIS, NEDS, and KID) are not reliable. These statistics are suppressed and are designated with an asterisk (*). The estimates of standard errors in HCUPnet were calculated using SUDAAN software. These estimates may differ slightly if other software packages are used to calculate variances.

This is a table of the people above that are impacted by age:

Patient and hospital characteristics for
ICD-9-CM all-listed diagnosis code
276.1 Hyposmolality

SO, the majority of those who are being treated for hyponatremia are the elderly. This information tends to be true for the majority of illness and disease. The elderly and children tend to be the targets for most health concerns. However, surprisingly, after the elderly between the ages of 65 and older, the next largest group are adults age 45 to 64. So, children are less likely to develop this than other age groups. I thought that was pretty interesting.

The following section of information includes additional statistics, which I found also surprising. Usually, illnesses or disease tends to target those impoverished, but that is not the case for hyponatremia. Women develop it more than men. Please take your time to read the following statistics, and feel free to ask me questions if you need assistance deciphering the figures.

Here is the statistics for those who developed hyponatremia in 2009:

Weighted national estimates from HCUP Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS), 2009, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), based on data collected by individual States and provided to AHRQ by the States. Total number of weighted discharges in the U.S. based on HCUP NIS = 39,434,956. Statistics based on estimates with a relative standard error (standard error / weighted estimate) greater than 0.30 or with standard error = 0 in the nationwide statistics (NIS, NEDS, and KID) are not reliable. These statistics are suppressed and are designated with an asterisk (*). The estimates of standard errors in HCUPnet were calculated using SUDAAN software. These estimates may differ slightly if other software packages are used to calculate variances.

NOW, I HAVE TO SAY THIS: I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A DISCREPANCY, A SIGNIFICANT DISCREPANCY, IN THOSE LISTED AS TO HAVE HYPONATREMIA IN 2009, AS THE ONLY DIAGNOSIS IN 2009 VS THE DATA LISTED IN 2010. WHEN I SELECTED HYPOSMOLALITY AS THE ONLY DIAGNOSIS CODE IN 2009, THE STATISTICS DROPPED TO ~90,000 PEOPLE. HOWEVER, WHEN I SELECTED HYPOSMOLALITY AS BEING A DIAGNOSIS WITH OTHER MEDICAL CONDITIONS, THERE WERE OVER 1.7 MILLION. WHEN I FUNNELED THE SAME SEARCH OPTIONS INTO THE 2010 DATA, THE NUMBER WAS THE SAME FOR BOTH SEARCHES.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

I think the information was coded incorrectly in previous years, or in 2010, but it’s difficult to say which information is correct. It is accurate to say that there are millions being treated for hyponatremia each year, but it is apparently difficult to determine if they are developing hyponatremia while being treated in the hospital for other conditions or whether or not they are being hospitalized because they have hyponatremia on its own.

I hope that makes sense, but it’s important to keep that in mind when reviewing the statistics.

I hope to obtain the same information for CPM/EPM, but it’s more difficult because it is rare, and I don’t believe there is an actual single diagnosis code for it. In other words, they include CPM/EPM, in a blanket diagnosis code for central nervous system injury, which can include numerous other injuries.

Well, there you go folks. I am completely exhausted, so I am going to leave it there right now. Please, if you read my blog, and feel that I dropped the ball on a topic or think there should be expansion on a topic, PLEASE, PLEASE, let me know. I do not remember the things I’ve posted about before, and it’s difficult for me to go back and read through my other posts, so I am relying on you to keep me on track.

Thank you!

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