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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Salt Cravings, Swollen Legs And Labored Breathing?

ex husband drove up from south carolina to CT - does not take care of himself, 78 years old, 300 pounds, has Afib, his legs have been very swollen for the past three weeks, now that he is in CT he is craving salt, along with the swollen legs, can;t get shoes on, last year when he was here he was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension and needed to have his thyroid checked which he did not when he want back to south carolina. His breathing is labored now. Wondering if we should get him to the hospital? He is very stubborn and says he will be better in a couple of days.
posted on Wed, 5 Jul 2017
Twitter Tue, 3 Oct 2017 Answered on
Twitter Tue, 3 Oct 2017 Last reviewed on
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response

Hello
Your husband's salt cravings is dangerous, especially that he has a cardiac condition with pulmonary hypertension.
the cause of craving of salt can be because of dehydration , electrolyte imbalance, or more serious disease called Addison's disease.
The swollen of his legs and difficulty of breathing is an alarm sign cause consuming too much salt leads to consuming a lot of water to dilute this excess sodium.

The increased liquid volume causes small blood vessels, to leak some of the excess fluid into the space between cells, causing Edema, which could be in his legs or in his lungs causing pulmonary edema which is an emergency.
You should convince your husband to go to the hospital immediately.

Hope I answered your question
Wish your husband a speedy recovery
Best regards
Dr.Noor Farid
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What Causes Salt Cravings, Swollen Legs And Labored Breathing?

Hello Your husband s salt cravings is dangerous, especially that he has a cardiac condition with pulmonary hypertension. the cause of craving of salt can be because of dehydration , electrolyte imbalance, or more serious disease called Addison s disease. The swollen of his legs and difficulty of breathing is an alarm sign cause consuming too much salt leads to consuming a lot of water to dilute this excess sodium. The increased liquid volume causes small blood vessels, to leak some of the excess fluid into the space between cells, causing Edema, which could be in his legs or in his lungs causing pulmonary edema which is an emergency. You should convince your husband to go to the hospital immediately. Hope I answered your question Wish your husband a speedy recovery Best regards Dr.Noor Farid