34 years
I suddenly got cramps 3 days ago during the day and night whether I'm moving or seated. They started in my arms then spread to my knees and ankles. I got these cramps after 1 week of diarrhea.
Nov 24, 2014
The diffuse pattern of the cramps (involving almost your entire body) and the fact that you have had diarrhea for the last few days could mean that these cramps are due to hypokalemia (low potassium), as diarrhea is notorious for causing more loss of important electrolytes in the body (minerals), namely sodium and potassium; a low blood potassium produces symptoms like muscle pain, abdominal bloating and crampy abdominal pain (as the intestines cannot contract properly if the blood potassium level is low). Your best bet is eating a couple of bananas! If however your symptoms persist, you need to be seen by a physician.
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You have postinfectious myositis which means inflammation of the muscle after and infection. Infection (mostly viral) is the most common cause of muscle inflammation. When the muscle is inflammed the most common symptom is cramps also you can have weakness and swelling. Other causes of myositis are inflammatory conditions, drugs, injury, rhabdomyolysis (muscle breakdown).
In case of postviral myositis no specific treatment is required. However if the cause is postviral rhabdomyolysis you need to drink a lot of water because the muscle parts pass to the kidney and you need to wash it out. To be sure that you don't have rhabdomyolysis it is important to do CK (also called CPK) levels and check if it is abnormally very high.
What is reassuring is that it is after an infection and is acute so you don't have to worry a lot about it. In case it gets frequent you need to do more extensive workup other than CK levels.
In case of postviral myositis no specific treatment is required. However if the cause is postviral rhabdomyolysis you need to drink a lot of water because the muscle parts pass to the kidney and you need to wash it out. To be sure that you don't have rhabdomyolysis it is important to do CK (also called CPK) levels and check if it is abnormally very high.
What is reassuring is that it is after an infection and is acute so you don't have to worry a lot about it. In case it gets frequent you need to do more extensive workup other than CK levels.
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