All issues > Volume 36(11); 1993

Case Report

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 1993;36(11):1621-1625. Published online November 15, 1993.

A Case of Hypodipsic Hypernatremia

Seung Hee SH Park¹, Hong Sin HS Jeon¹, Sun Hwa SH Kim¹, Don Hee DH Ahn¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, National Medical Center, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Hypodipsic hypernatremia is characterized by chronic or recurrent episodes of severe hypernatermia associated with dehydration and a lack of thirst. This constellation of deficits suggests that the syndrome is due to hypodipsia of destruction of the hypothalamic osmoreceptors that regulate thirst and ADH secretion. We report a child with abnormalities of the central nervous system who had hypernatremia and a lack of thirst without detectable abnormalities in the osmoregulation of ADH secretion. The patient was a 11month old female and her chief complaints were poor oral intake and weight gain. There recurrent hypernatremia with hyperosmosis and normal level of plasma ADH. With intravenous rehydratin, oral intake was improved and plasma sodium level decreased.

Keywords :Hypodipsic, Hypernatremia