Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2013 Jan;17(1):174-6.
doi: 10.4103/2230-8210.107880.

Recurrent hypokalemic paralysis: An atypical presentation of hypothyroidism

Uma Sinha  1 , Nilanjan Sengupta, Keshab Sinharay, Pranab K Sahana
Affiliations
Case Reports

Recurrent hypokalemic paralysis: An atypical presentation of hypothyroidism

Uma Sinha et al. Indian J Endocrinol Metab. 2013 Jan.

Abstract

Hypothyroidism presenting as recurrent hypokalemic paralysis is rare in the literature. This transient and episodic neurological condition is commonly associated with thyrotoxicosis. We report a case of young female admitted with recurrent paralytic attacks since last 1 year. She had no symptom of hypothyroidism. She had weakness of all four limbs, delayed relaxation of ankle jerks, and normal higher mental function. There was no enlargement of thyroid. Serum potassium level ranged from 1.6 to 3.2 meq/L during attack with high serum creatine phosphokinase level. Electromyography was normal. The patient was diagnosed having chronic thyroiditis with high thyroid-stimulating hormone and thyroid-related antibodies. Follow up shows satisfactory result with thyroxine replacement. It is an extremely rare and unusual presentation of hypothyroidism, probably the fourth reported case of hypothyroidism with hypokalemic paralysis, to the best of our knowledge.

Keywords: Hypokalemia; hypothyroidism; recurrent paralysis.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared

References

    1. Bandhakavi M. Periodic paralysis as an unusual presentation of autoimmune hypothyroidism with goiter. Clin Pediatr (Phila) 2009;48:677–8. - PubMed
    1. Papa L, Lee P, Goldfeder B, Ferguson K, Luetke C. Hypokalemic periodic paralysis: An unexpected finding of hypothyroidism. Am J Clin Med. 2005;2:20–2.
    1. Kinoshita I, Usa T, Satoh A, Tsujihata M. A case of hypothyroidism associated with hypokalemic periodic paralysis. Rinsho Shinkeigaku. 1990;30:100–2. - PubMed
    1. Soule BR, Simone NL. Hypokalemic periodic paralysis: A case report and review of the literature. Cases J. 2008;1:256–61. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Rose BD, Post TW. 5th ed. New York, United States of America: McGraw-Hill; 2001. Clinical physiology of acid-base and electrolyte disorders.

Publication types