Excessive H2O leads to near death

He started to convulse, suffering from respiratory failure as sodium levels in his blood dipped too low, added local media.

Resuscitation efforts were successful and the man was monitored overnight at the intensive care unit of the Hsin Chu General Hospital (HCH).

Water intoxication, also known as water poisoning or hyper-hydration, is a condition due to the excessive consumption of water and is potentially fatal.

Chen huei-ching, an ICU physician at the HCH, explained that the man, surnamed Zeng, has a 20-year history of schizophrenia and made the assumption that drinking water would help purge his system of any side effects from the medicine he has been taking over the years.

Zeng's brother said that Zeng had been paranoid about the need to get renal dialyses and made the choice to cleanse his system after he left the psychiatric ward in May.

He did not realize one could have too much water, as doctors are always encouraging the intake of more fluids, said the sibling.

When Zeng seemed noticeably listless, walking with a clumsy gait and talking with a lisp, Zeng's brother arranged for a head computerized tomography, or CT scan.

Zeng started to seize during the middle of the exam, with his face turning blue, noted Chen.

It was a stroke of luck that Zeng was already on hospital premises, added the physician.

Chen went further to say that symptoms of neurological disorders like water poisoning are directly related to the hyponatremia rate, or the speed in which sodium levels drop in the blood.

The usually means the consumption of too much liquid in a too short period, said Chen.

Symptoms indicative of hyper-hydration include nausea, headache, muscle cramps, slurred speech, confusion and seizures in severe cases, he added.

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