Hypokalaemic rhabdomyolysis : an unusual presentation of coeliac disease

To describe the clinical presentation and management of a patient with hypokalaemic rhabdomyolysis secondary to coeliac disease. Retrospective study. Hospital based. A 60-year-old Caucasian man presenting with weakness caused by hypokalaemic rhabdomyolysis secondary to coeliac disease. Following the diagnosis by jejunal biopsy, the patient was treated with both intravenous and oral potassium supplements, and a gluten-free diet. Resolution of weakness and restitution of normal villous architecture following treatment. The patient's myopathy responded to the potassium supplements, his diarrhoea and histological changes resolved while on the gluten-free diet. Patients with coeliac disease may present with hypokalaemia in association with steatorrhoea. If potassium loss is rapid, rhabdomyolysis may occur. Coeliac disease should be considered a cause of malabsorption-induced hypokalaemic rhabdomyolysis.