Intravenous infusion of magnesium sulfate is not associated with  cardiovascular, liver, kidney, and metabolic toxicity in adults

Elisa Karhu¹, Steven E Atlas¹, Jinrun Gao², Syed A Mehdi³, Dominique Musselman³, Sharon Goldberg⁴, Judi M Woolger¹, Raul Corredor³, Muhammad H Abbas³, Leopoldo Arosemena¹, Simone Caccamo¹, Ashar Farooqi³, Janet Konefal⁵, Laura Lantigua³, Vanessa Padilla³, Ammar Rasul³, Eduard Tiozzo³, Oscar L Higuera³, Andrea Fiallo³, John E Lewis^3*

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¹ Departments of Medicine, Departments of Medicine

² Barclay’s, Inc., Wilmington, DE, USA

³ Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, and

⁴ Glow Health PA, Bay Harbor Islands, FL, USA

⁵ Family Medicine and Community Health, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

JCTR 2019, 4(1), 47–55; https://doi.org/10.18053/jctres.04.201801.002

Submitted: 15 October 2017 | Revised: 23 February 2018 | Accepted: 23 February 2018 | Published: 4 April 2018

© 2018 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution -Noncommercial 4.0 International License (CC-by the license) ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ )

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Abstract

Background: Magnesium (Mg) deficiency contributes to the pathophysiology of numerous diseases, and the therapeutic use of Mg has steadily increased by consumers over time. The increased in-hospital use of intravenous (IV) magnesium sulfate (MgSO₄) warrants more extensive study regarding the safety of the therapy. The aim of this study was to determine the safety of IV MgSO₄ infusion on cardiovascular, liver, kidney, and metabolic markers in adults.
Methods: Twelve volunteers were randomized to one of two conditions: (a) IV infusion of MgSO₄ in 5% dextrose followed by IV infusion of 5% dextrose 1 week later or (b) IV infusion of 5% dextrose followed by IV infusion of MgSO₄ in 5% dextrose 1 week later. An electrocardiogram was monitored continuously throughout the course of the infusions. Blood was drawn pre- and post-infusions for complete blood count/chemistry, high-density lipoprotein and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides.
Results: Serum Mg increased from pre- to post-infusion in the MgSO₄ + 5% dextrose group (p<0.0001). The QRS interval length increased from pre- to post-infusion in the MgSO₄ + 5% dextrose group (p<0.04). Additionally, serum glucose concentration increased in the MgSO₄+ 5% dextrose group (p = 0.04). These significant findings were modeled with gender and age as covariates. No other significant differences were found.
Conclusions: The administration of IV infusion of MgSO₄ (4 g/100 mL) in 5% dextrose over a 4-hour treatment period poses no significant deleterious effects on cardiovascular, liver, kidney, or metabolic function.
Relevance for patients: IV infusion of MgSO₄ may be used for proper treatment indications without significant concern for adverse effects on cardiovascular, liver, kidney, or metabolic function.

Keywords

MgSO4

clinical pharmacology

drug toxicity

Conflict of interest

The authors declare they have no competing interests.

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