Pseudohyperkalaemia is a common finding in myeloproliferative disorders that may lead to inappropriate management of patients.

Pseudohyperkalaemia in conditions with increased platelet counts is caused by an in vitro rise of the serum potassium concentration during whole blood coagulation and the lysis of the platelets and other cellular components, in the presence of normal renal function and normal plasma potassium levels. The association between pseudohyperkalaemia and aetiology of thrombocytosis was studied in a 6-year retrospective audit on 90 patients with thrombocytosis referred to the Haematology Department in Ulster Hospital Dundonald, a large district general hospital. Over two-thirds of this study population had myeloproliferative disorders, and the most common diagnosis was primary thrombocythaemia (41%, n = 37). Reactive thrombocytosis was observed in approximately one-third of the cases (32%, n = 29). Pseudohyperkalaemia with apparent potassium level above the upper limit of the normal range (reference range K 3.5-5.1 mmol/l) was observed in the majority of patients with thrombocytosis from any aetiology (60%, n = 54). The likelihood of finding pseudohyperkalaemia was highest among patients with primary thrombocythaemia (75.7%, n = 28/37) and polythaemia rubra vera (75%, n = 12/16), followed by myelofibrosis (50%, 4/8) and reactive thrombocytosis (34.5%, n = 10/29). A highly significant positive correlation was observed between the platelet counts and the serum potassium level (Spearman's correlation coefficient, R = 0.998, P = 0.01). Awareness of pseudohyperkalemia in disease conditions with increased platelet counts will lead to the withholding of potentially harmful treatment.