The effectiveness of continuous venovenous hemodiafiltration in phenobarbital intoxication

Phenobarbital continues to be widely used in childhood epilepsy. Incorrect drug prescription can sometimes lead to intoxication, particularly in young children. A 40-month-old female infant presented to our emergency department due to failure to awaken. The patient was assessed in terms of etiology of coma, and her history revealed that she had been given a 100 mg phenobarbital pill instead of 15 mg. Her blood phenobarbital level was high (>80 mg/dl). At physical examination, her Glasgow coma score was 6, the pupils were isochoric, pupillary light reflex was bilateral positive, deep tendon reflexes were absent, respiration was superficial, and pulmonary bilateral diffuse secretory rales were present, and the patient was intubated. Continuous venovenous hemodiafiltration (CVVHDF) was performed due to prolonged coma, intubation, and potentially fatal phenobarbital level. Blood phenobarbital levels at 4 and 12 h improved to >80 and 33.4 mg/dl, and the patient was extubated at 14 h. CVVHDF was effective in intoxication despite long-acting barbiturate phenobarbital not binding to protein. We think that this is a useful method capable of use in phenobarbital intoxications.

High-frequency oscillatory ventilation for acute respiratory distress syndrome.

Objective. To evaluate the effectiveness of HFOV in pediatric patients with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Methods. In this retrospective study, we reviewed all 20 pediatric patients, who were consecutively ventilated with HFOV in the pediatric intensive care unit of a tertiary medical center, from January 2006 to February 2007. Results. A total of 20 patients were enrolled. The median age of the subjects was 70 (3-168) months; 10 were male. All patients received conventional ventilation before HFOV. After initiation of HFOV, there was an immediate and sustained increase in PaO2/FiO2 ratio. The PaO2/FiO2 ratio was elevated and OI was decreased significantly after 10-20 minutes and maintained for at least 48 hours (p= 0.03, both). Thirteen of the 20 patients were successfully weaned. No significant change in the mean arterial pressure and heart rate was noted after HFOV. Overall survival rate was 65%. Of 20 patients, 11 patients suffered from extrapulmonary ARDS (ARDSexp) and 9 from pulmonary ARDS (ARDSp). When HFOV was initiated, there was significant increase in PaO2/FiO2 and decrease in OI in ARDSexp compared to ARDSp (p= 0.03, both). Also mortality rate was significantly lower in patients with ARDSexp (9% vs.66%), (p= 0.01). Conclusion. In our study, HFOV was effective in oxygenation and seems to be safe for pediatric ARDS patients. HFOV affected ARDSp and ARDSexp paediatric patients differently. However prospective, randomized controlled trials are needed to identify its benefits over conventional modes of mechanical ventilation.

Rhabdomyolysis caused by hypernatremia.

Rhabdomyolysis is a clinical picture which is rarely seen in children. In this case report here it is presented a patient who has biochemical and clinical signs of rhabdomyolysis and admitted to our clinic with hypernatremia. The authors think that it is necessary to be alert for rhabdomyolysis in severe hypernatremia cases.

Prevalence of hepatitis A in children and adolescents in Adana, Turkey.

The present study was aimed at determining the seroprevalence of anti-HAV in children and adolescents in the city of Adana, Turkey. The overall prevalence of anti-HAV was 44.4% (316/711). The prevalence increased with advancing age i.e. 28.8% (2.1-6 yr), 49.8% (6.1-12 yr), and 68% (12.1-16.5 yr) (P < 0.0001). Seroprevalence was significantly lower in children less than 6 years and belonging to higher socioeconomic status.