Respiratory paralysis due to renal tubular acidosis (RTA) is rare. We report a 22-year-old
lady who developed severe bulbar, respiratory and limb paralysis following respiratory
infection. She had hypokalemia (1.6 meq/L) and hyperchloremic (110 meq/l) acidosis (pH
7.1). She was diagnosed as distal RTA by ammonium chloride test. She improved following
sodium bicarbonate and potassium supplementation. RTA should be differentiated from
familial periodic paralysis (FPP) because acetazolamide used in FPP aggravates RTA and …