Body fluids and salt metabolism - Part I
1 Department of Pediatrics, Bellinzona and Mendrisio and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
2 Pediatric Nephrology, University Children's Hospital Bern and University of Bern, Bern, Switzerland
3 Department of Pediatrics, San Leopoldo Mandic Hospital, Merate-Lecco, Italy
Italian Journal of Pediatrics 2009, 35:36 doi:10.1186/1824-7288-35-36Published: 19 November 2009
There is a high frequency of diarrhea and vomiting in childhood. As a consequence the focus of the present review is to recognize the different body fluid compartments, to clinically assess the degree of dehydration, to know how the equilibrium between extracellular fluid and intracellular fluid is maintained, to calculate the effective blood osmolality and discuss both parenteral fluid requirments and repair.