Acute Pediatric Rhabdomyolysis

Abstract

Rhabdomyolysis is a relatively common condition that may occur intermittently in chronic and inflammatory myopathy, muscular dystrophy, and metabolic myopathy. Rhabdomyolysis can also present acutely in otherwise healthy individuals. The list of etiologies for acute muscle cell lysis is enormous, with new causes described yearly. Series on acute pediatric rhabdomyolysis have not yet been published. This article describes a retrospective review of children admitted to the authors' institution during an 8-year period in whom rhabdomyolysis was recognized as a complication during their hospital stay. Patients with intermittent or relapsing rhabdomyolysis were excluded. Nineteen children were identified. Trauma (five cases), nonketotic hyperosmolar coma (two cases), viral myositis (two cases), dystonia (two cases), and malignant hyperthermia-related conditions (two cases) were the most common causes of rhabdomyolysis. Acute renal failure was the most frequent complication, occurring in 42% of cases. The mean age of renal failure patients was 13.9 years, compared to 8 years for non-renal failure children. Careful assessment of the initial urinalysis would have suggested a diagnosis of rhabdomyolysis in 9 of 16 patients tested. ( J Child Neurol 2000;15:222-227).