Leptospirosis: A forgotten cause of quadriplegia

Quadriplegia may be of acute, subacute, or chronic onset and may have varied etiologies. Leptospirosis can produce quadriplegia, secondary to hypokalemia, which occurs due to kaliuresis. Leptospirosis is under diagnosed and under reported in India. The clinical features of leptospirosis are non-specific. Combining clinical expertise and awareness with rapid tests for diagnosis will increase the recognition of patients with leptospirosis and hypokalemia. Renal involvement is common in leptospirosis. In our country, hypokalemic manifestations of leptospirosis are under reported. We report a case of quadriplegia due to hypokalemia, secondary to leptospirosis.