[Effect of cardiac glycosides on whole body potassium concentration in circulatory insufficiency].

Variation of potassium levels produced by cardiac glycosides was assessed in patients with 1st- to 3d-stage circulatory insufficiency, by means of 40K radioactivity measurement in a low radioactivity background chamber. Total group figures demonstrated that total body potassium levels increased with the improvement of the patients' clinical condition. Total body potassium decreased in patients showing signs of cardiac glycoside intoxication. The analysis of the data with reference to pre-and post-treatment baseline tissue potassium concentrations, as compared to the desired level, showed tissue potassium to normalize under the effect of cardiac glycosides in cases of initially abnormal values, and to decrease irrespective of the initial values in cases of cardiac glycoside intoxication.