[Accidental poisoning by volatile hydrocarbons in children (apropos of 57 cases)]. / Intoxication accidentelle par les hydrocarbures volatils chez l'enfant (a propos de 57 observations.

Most of the accidentally intoxicated children who are admitted into hospital have swallowed volatile hydrocarbons. The ingested products are either aliphatic hydrocarbons, whether white spirit or petrol, or aromatic hydrocarbons. We have collected informations upon 57 children admitted into the pediatric department of The American Memorial Hospital in Reims, from 1973 to 1982. The children's average age is 24 months and they have usually swallowed very small amounts of the products. Early clinical manifestations involve mainly respiratory and digestive systems, while the most frequent manifestation is high fever. The early roentgenologic manifestations have a predominantly alveolar pattern which is to be found in the lower lobes. The appearance of pneumatoceles is the typical roentgenologic disturbance. The recovery is usually complete. Hydrocarbons directly reach the lungs down the respiratory tract-even without the children's swallowing down the wrong tract-owing to the physical characteristics of those products. That accounts for any gastric lavage being both unnecessary and dangerous.

[Pulmonary fibrosis during a case of dermatomyositis (author's transl)]. / Fibrose pulmonaire au cours d'une dermatomyosite.

The authors describe the case of a pulmonary interstitial fibrosis, the discovery of which preceeded the skin and muscular manifestations of dermatomyositis which was confirmed by a muscular biopsy. The aetiopathogenesis of the pulmonary disorder is not well known, nevertheless an immunological mechanism demonstrated in the experimental myositis is suggested but has yet to be proved.