Clinical reference

Hypokalaemia (mild-to-moderate)

Treatment options, dosing, cautions and Egyptian brands from the shipped Dawaa Reference card.

Evidence status

Checked against the sources named below

Sources3 sources

Egyptian National Drug Formulary - Cardiovascular 2024 · Klor-Con M (potassium chloride extended-release) US prescribing information, Dosage and Administration (DailyMed, Upsher-Smith) · Castro D, Sharma S. Hypokalemia. [Updated 2025 Jan 19]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2026 Jan-. Bookshelf ID: NBK482465. PMID: 29494072.

Verified against2 documents

Klor-Con M (potassium chloride extended-release) US prescribing information, Dosage and Administration (DailyMed, Upsher-Smith)
Castro D, Sharma S. Hypokalemia. [Updated 2025 Jan 19]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2026 Jan-. Bookshelf ID: NBK482465. PMID: 29494072.

Verified date2026-08

Presentation reference

Is it this?

Reference only, to read alongside your own examination.

Symptoms — what the patient reports (8)

Weak muscles, cramps and spasms, tiredness, palpitations, constipation and abdominal discomfort [abdominal pain · constipation · fatigue · muscle cramps · muscle weakness · palpitations]
Clues to the cause: diuretics, laxatives, poor intake, vomiting, or a family condition [vomiting]
Nothing shows until potassium falls below 3 mmol/L, unless the drop was sudden or another disease amplifies it
How bad the symptoms are tracks how low and how long, and they clear once the potassium is replaced
Marked weakness appears below 2.5 mmol/L, or at higher levels when the fall was sudden
Red flag: weakness climbs from the legs upward and can reach the breathing muscles, causing respiratory failure and death
Gut features are nausea, vomiting, a still bowel and a distended abdomen [abdominal distension · nausea · vomiting]
Periodic paralysis from low potassium is a rare inherited or acquired disorder in which potassium shifts into cells, with attacks of weakness that can reach the breathing muscles and kill [paralysis]

Signs — what you find (8)

Blood pressure may be high or normal, so measuring it is essential and it splits the causes
The heart may show an arrhythmia or signs of failure [arrhythmia]
The abdomen may be tender with quiet bowel sounds
Marked muscle weakness, and with it poor expansion of the chest on breathing in [muscle weakness]
Wasted muscles point to a long-standing deficiency rather than a sudden one
Neurologically, reflexes are abnormal and there may be tingling: reduced in periodic paralysis, malnutrition and diuretic use, brisk in alkalosis and after inhaled beta-agonists [paralysis · tingling]
A buffalo hump, rounded face and abdominal stretch marks point to Cushing disease as the setting [stretch marks]
In malnutrition look for other deficiency signs: wasting, wounds that will not heal, and bad teeth [muscle wasting]

Tests (12)

Serum electrolytes gauge severity and catch companions: alkalosis can carry low potassium, calcium and magnesium together
Chloride runs high when the kidney is wasting potassium and low in the alkalosis of vomiting
Urine potassium separates kidney loss from other causes; ideally a 24-hour collection, and more than 30 mEq a day means the kidney is at fault
As alternatives, a spot urine potassium above 15, or a potassium to creatinine ratio above 13 mEq/mmol, also means renal loss
Then check acid-base with a blood gas: acidosis or alkalosis, with or without renal wasting, narrows the cause
Commonest ECG changes: smaller T waves, ST depression, a U wave and a long QT, in that order, with the PR interval also lengthening
The U wave shows best in leads V4 to V6 and can be hard to separate from the T wave, and not everyone shows the classic pattern
Rhythms it can produce: atrial and ventricular ectopics, sinus bradycardia, paroxysmal atrial or junctional tachycardia, AV block, and ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation
Severe depletion brings torsades de pointes; the risk is greatest in older people, in heart disease, and on digoxin or antiarrhythmics
ECG change usually needs a moderate or severe fall, but varies widely between people, and low magnesium or digitalis can trigger arrhythmia at mild levels
Check magnesium too: it is often low alongside, worsens the picture, raises the torsades risk with QT-prolonging drugs, and blocks successful potassium replacement
Imaging may find a structural cause: renal ultrasound for cysts, tumour or obstruction, and CT or MRI for adrenal or brain lesions

If not this — what else fits (9)

Endocrine: overactive thyroid, thyrotoxicosis, Conn syndrome
Treatment-related: long-term corticosteroids, insulin therapy
Congenital: Bartter syndrome and hypokalaemic periodic paralysis
Kidney: renal tubular acidosis and osmotic diuresis
Gut losses: laxative abuse and vomiting
Too little coming in: eating disorders and restrictive diets
Loss through the skin from heavy sweating
Shift into cells: the alkalosis of chronic lung disease, or the acidosis of diabetic ketoacidosis
Other electrolytes low at the same time: calcium and magnesium

SourceStatPearls "Hypokalemia" - disease-level clinical article

Presentation findings are traced to the source above.

POTASSIUM CHLORIDE

1st line

Strength600 mg

Formoral.solid

Adult dose and duration

3.0-7.5 g (40-100 mmol) daily in divided doses after meals - until resolved

Paediatric dose

75-150 mg/kg/day [child max 7500 mg]

(1-2 mmol/kg (75-150 mg/kg) daily in divided doses)

Dose by weight
3kg	225-450 mg/day
4kg	300-600 mg/day
5kg	375-750 mg/day
6kg	450-900 mg/day
7kg	525-1050 mg/day
8kg	600-1200 mg/day
9kg	675-1350 mg/day
10kg	750-1500 mg/day
11kg	825-1650 mg/day
12kg	900-1800 mg/day
13kg	975-1950 mg/day
14kg	1050-2100 mg/day
15kg	1125-2250 mg/day
16kg	1200-2400 mg/day
17kg	1275-2550 mg/day
18kg	1350-2700 mg/day
19kg	1425-2850 mg/day
20kg	1500-3000 mg/day
21kg	1575-3150 mg/day
22kg	1650-3300 mg/day
23kg	1725-3450 mg/day
24kg	1800-3600 mg/day
25kg	1875-3750 mg/day
26kg	1950-3900 mg/day
27kg	2025-4050 mg/day
28kg	2100-4200 mg/day
29kg	2175-4350 mg/day
30kg	2250-4500 mg/day
31kg	2325-4650 mg/day
32kg	2400-4800 mg/day
33kg	2475-4950 mg/day
34kg	2550-5100 mg/day
35kg	2625-5250 mg/day
36kg	2700-5400 mg/day
37kg	2775-5550 mg/day
38kg	2850-5700 mg/day
39kg	2925-5850 mg/day
40kg	3000-6000 mg/day
41kg	3075-6150 mg/day
42kg	3150-6300 mg/day
43kg	3225-6450 mg/day
44kg	3300-6600 mg/day
45kg	3375-6750 mg/day
46kg	3450-6900 mg/day
47kg	3525-7050 mg/day
48kg	3600-7200 mg/day
49kg	3675-7350 mg/day
50kg	3750-7500 mg/day

Dose source

Klor-Con M (potassium chloride extended-release) US prescribing information, Dosage and Administration (DailyMed, Upsher-Smith)

Why

Direct oral potassium replacement for mild-to-moderate hypokalaemia, correcting the deficit that predisposes to arrhythmia and muscle weakness.

Cautions

Sustained-release (SR) tablets must be swallowed whole with food and water; do NOT crush or chew.
Take with or after food with plenty of water to prevent GI ulceration.
Monitor serum potassium and renal function regularly.
Contraindicated in hyperkalaemia, severe renal failure, and addisonian crisis.
No single dose above 20 mEq (about 1.5 g). If the day's total is higher than that, it has to be split - a large single load is what ulcerates the gut wall.
Anything that slows a tablet through the gut - stricture, obstruction, an anticholinergic - rules out the solid form. A tablet that stops moving sits and burns.

Egyptian brands

Egyptian brand	Manufacturer	Indicative price
GEO POTA-K 600 SR 30 TABS.? strength differs	MARCYRL PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES (MPI) > GEOPHARMA	60.00 EGP (2.00/unit)
SANSO POTASSIUM 200 MG 28 TABS.? strength differs	AUG PHARMA	120.00 EGP (4.29/unit)
POTASSIUM M 3.3GM/100ML SYRUP 120ML? strength differs? different route - not oral solid	EL NILE.	29.00 EGP
SANSO POTASSIUM SYRUP 160 ML? strength differs? different route - not oral solid	AUG PHARMA	120.00 EGP

Prices are indicative (dataset snapshot 2026-06); verify with the pharmacy.