Loading...
Current guidelines (e.g., Am J Med 2013; 126:S1) recommend fluid restriction as first-line treatment for patients with the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH), which is the most common cause of hyponatremia in hospitalized patients. Because other treatment options are less-well studied, researchers randomly assigned 92 hospitalized patients with SIADH and sodium levels <130 mmol/L to one of three groups: fluid restriction alone, fluid restriction plus furosemide (20–40 mg/day), or fluid restriction plus furosemide plus salt tablets (3 g/day). All treatments were continued for 28 days, even following discharge.
For all groups, mean sodium levels increased significantly from baseline (from 125 mmol/L to 130 mmol/L) by day 4.…