Treatments in Conventional Medicine and Their Limitations
Conventional medicine focuses on protecting the heart and rapidly lowering potassium in emergencies. Under the diagnosis of a Korean Medicine doctor, BM Korean Internal Medicine Clinic screens patients requiring emergency care and coordinates or adjusts existing medication therapies.
- Emergency Treatment: Calcium Gluconate injection to stabilize the cardiac membrane, and Insulin + Glucose therapy to shift potassium into cells.
- Potassium Removal: Using diuretics to excrete via urine, or administering Cation Exchange Resins (Kayexalate, etc.) orally or via enema to bind potassium in the gut and excrete it via stool.
- Dialysis: Hemodialysis is performed if levels are not controlled by medication.
[Limitations]
Emergency injection therapies are fast-acting but temporary (lasting a few hours).
Potassium binders (resins) have an unpleasant taste and carry risks of serious gastrointestinal side effects like constipation and intestinal necrosis, making long-term use difficult.
Above all, for pre-dialysis patients, there is a lack of long-term management tools that can safely lower only potassium while preserving kidney function.
BM's Integrative Solution: Detoxification via the Gut and Kidney Protection
BM Korean Internal Medicine Clinic combines the principle of "Natural Dialysis"—excreting potassium through the intestines without burdening the kidneys—with treatments that revive kidney function.
- Unblocking the Bowels & Draining Turbidity (Herbal Enema, 通腑泄濁): Herbal enemas or oral medicines using Rhubarb (Daehwang) and Oyster Shell effectively excrete nitrogenous waste and potassium from the blood through the intestinal mucosa. This has fewer side effects than conventional binders and higher patient compliance.
- Warming Kidney & Resolving Stasis (溫腎化瘀): We use formulas like Jinmu-tang or herbs like Salvia (Dansam) to improve renal blood flow and prevent fibrosis, preserving the kidney's residual function to excrete potassium on its own as much as possible.
- Personalized Management: Rather than simply restricting potassium intake, we approach treatment by enhancing metabolic function based on the patient's kidney status and constitution.
Evidence-Based Korean Medicine (Scientific Evidence)
Studies prove that Korean Medicine treatments (especially Rhubarb) are effective in excreting potassium and uremic toxins in patients with chronic renal failure.
- Improvement of Chronic Renal Failure and Hyperkalemia by Rhubarb: A meta-analysis confirmed that herbal medicine treatment including Rhubarb (oral or enema) significantly lowers serum Potassium, Creatinine (Scr), and Blood Urea Nitrogen (BUN) levels and improves metabolic acidosis in patients with chronic renal failure.
- Huang W, Rao Y, Li L, Li C, An Y. Clinical effect of rhubarb on the treatment of chronic renal failure: A meta-analysis. Frontiers in Pharmacology. 2023;14:1108861. doi:10.3389/fphar.2023.1108861
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- Preservation of Renal Function by Astragalus: Astragalus inhibits renal tissue fibrosis and preserves residual renal function (GFR), thereby helping the kidneys maintain electrolyte balance in the long term.
- Zhang HW, Lin ZX, Xu C, Leung C, Chan LS. Astragalus (a traditional Chinese medicine) for treating chronic kidney disease. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2014;2014(10):CD008369. doi:10.1002/14651858.cd008369.pub2
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- Regulation of Cardiac Ion Channels by Shensong yangxin Capsule: Hyperkalemia can trigger cardiac arrhythmias. Shensong yangxin capsule helps stabilize the heart's electrical activity even under electrolyte imbalance by regulating sodium, potassium, and calcium ion channels in the myocardium.
- Lu X, Wang T, Hou B, et al. Shensong yangxin, a multi-functional traditional Chinese medicine for arrhythmia: A review of components, pharmacological mechanisms, and clinical applications. Heliyon. 2024;10(16):e35560. doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e35560
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