Dehydration

Dehydration is the removal of water (hydor in ancient Greek) from an object. Medically, dehydration is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition in which the body contains an insufficient volume of water for normal functioning.

Medical causes of dehydration

In humans, dehydration can be caused by a wide range of diseases and states that impair water homeostasis in the body. These include:

Related Topics:
Human - Disease - Homeostasis

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• external or stress-related causes
• blood loss or hypotension due to physical trauma
• diarrhea
• hyperthermia
• shock
• prolonged physical activity without consuming adequate water, especially in a hot environment
• survival situations, especially desert survival conditions
• vomiting
• infectious diseases
• cholera
• gastroenteritis
• shigellosis
• yellow fever
• malnutrition
• electrolyte imbalance
• hypernatremia (also caused by dehydration)
• hyponatremia, especially from restricted salt diets
• excessive consumption of alcohol
• fasting
• patient refusal of nutrition and hydration
• other causes of obligate water loss
• severe hyperglycemia, especially in diabetes
• glycosuria