Sodium Correction Calculator

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The serum sodium reported on the lab panel (mEq/L, equivalent to mmol/L).
mEq/L
Serum glucose. Switch the unit to mmol/L if your lab reports in SI units (mmol/L x 18 = mg/dL).
Katz 1.6 is the traditional rule; Hillier 2.4 fits better when glucose is above ~400 mg/dL.
Adds the effective (tonicity) osmolality from sodium and glucose, useful in DKA and HHS.
Corrected sodiumCorrected sodium low (hyponatremia)
134.8mEq/L

Estimated true sodium once the glucose-driven dilution is added back.

Measured sodium130mEq/L
Correction added4.8mEq/L
Corrected (other factor)137.2mEq/L
Effective serum osmolality282mOsm/kg
134.8 mEq/L
Low (hyponatremia)<135Normal135-145High (hypernatremia)145+

Corrected sodium is roughly 134.8 mEq/L.

  • Hyperglycemia dilutes serum sodium; the Katz 1.6 factor adds about 4.8 mEq/L back to the measured value.
  • Even after correction the sodium reads low, so this is likely true hyponatremia rather than pseudohyponatremia.
  • The other common factor would give 137.2 mEq/L; the two estimates usually lead to the same clinical impression.
  • Effective osmolality is about 282 mOsm/kg (normal is roughly 275-295).

Next stepTreat the underlying hyperglycemia and re-check sodium as glucose normalizes.

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