Discrepancies of frequent symptoms in licorice‐induced pseudoaldosteronism: A comparison of a systematic case review and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare's manual

Abstract

Licorice‐induced pseudoaldosteronism has been identified as a side effect of excessive licorice consumption. This condition is often characterized by hypertension, hypokalemia, and hyporeninemic hypoaldosteronism. If left untreated, this condition can lead to severe complications, such as arrhythmia and rhabdomyolysis, which can be life‐threatening. Thus, it is critical to recognize the early symptoms of pseudoaldosteronism to facilitate prompt intervention and effective management. Here, we investigated the frequency of various accompanying symptoms by systematically reviewing case reports of licorice‐induced pseudoaldosteronism not covered in similar studies and comparing findings with the manual on pseudoaldosteronism published by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW).A comprehensive search was conducted using MEDLINE/PubMed to gather relevant human studies published between 1960 and July 2023 and written in English; data focusing on accompanying symptoms were summarized.Thirty‐seven pertinent articles, encompassing 48 case reports (26 females and 1 unreported sex, mean age 64.6 ± 14.6), were identified and scrutinized. The analysis revealed that hypertension was the most prevalent followed by weakness and edema. None of the researched cases reported instances of spasticity or rigidity.The study findings identified hypertension and weakness followed by edema as the predominant symptoms associated with pseudoaldosteronism which is in agreement with the MHLW manual. However, we doubt that spasticity, rigidity, and possibly numbness could be noticed by patients and their families as common initial symptoms outlined in the manual.