Bitter experience with liquorice sweetening agent resulting in apparent mineralocorticoid excess with periodic paralysis

Chronic liquorice ingestion is a rare cause of secondary hypertension and hypokalaemia with periodic paralysis. We report the case of a middle-aged Indian man who presented with hypertension and hypokalaemic alkalosis with recurrent bouts of periodic paralysis. Biochemical investigations revealed suppressed plasma renin and aldosterone concentrations with normal cortisol concentration. A detailed history revealed that he was addicted for the last 5 years to a form of chewing tobacco mixed with herbal preparations as a sweetening agent which on analysis revealed active principles of glycyrrhizin using the thin liquid chromatography method. The hypokalaemia resolved and hypertension control improved significantly after discontinuing liquorice consumption, and the patient was asymptomatic at 1-year follow-up. Long-term liquorice ingestion should be kept in mind as a reversible cause of hypokalaemic periodic paralysis, with a meticulous history and biochemical evaluation helping in identifying this recognisable and curable medical disorder.

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